With help from the city of Auburn, Cayuga County will relocate its primary data center from the downtown office building that has been closed since May 2024.
The Cayuga County Legislature approved a resolution in June that includes a lease agreement with the city. The county will pay $2,480 a year to rent space inside the Auburn Fire Station on Seminary Street. The fire station will be the new home for the data center, which contains document management, employee states, financial systems and public safety communications.
The Auburn City Council will vote on the lease agreement at its meeting Thursday.
Finding a new location for the data center is a priority for the county amid the ongoing building closure. As described in a City Council memo summarizing the agreement, the county needs "uninterrupted access to the data center to ensure reliable service delivery to residents, business continuity for county departments and the protection of sensitive information and public data."
The memo details the county's concern with the data center remaining in the building. Tests confirmed the presence of vermiculite, which can contain asbestos, throughout the building. That's what led to the closure last year.
Initial tests found no contamination in the basement, where the county stores IT equipment. However, Cayuga County Legislature Chairman Jonathan Anna revealed in May that further testing found asbestos in the basement.
According to the City Council memo, the closure of the office building and the environmental conditions pose "a potential risk of contamination to high-value IT infrastructure" and that "a significant threat to the integrity and functionality of county technology assets exists."
Although the resolution the City Council will consider focuses on the lease agreement, the county Legislature's action in June covered additional expenses related to the move.
The relocation project, according to the legislative resolution, will cost $343,000.
Government reporter Robert Harding can be reached at (315) 664-4631 or robert.harding@lee.net. Follow him on X @RobertHarding.