Last Monday evening, the Town of Montgomery Planning Board made a determination required by the State Environmental Quality Review Act, finding that Medline Industries Inc.’s proposed warehouse would not have adverse effects on the environment.

Located on the east side of NYS Route 416 and north of Interstate 84, the 1.3-million-square-foot warehouse is proposed in the Town of Montgomery, just outside the Village of Montgomery limits. The building would replace the outgrown 500,000-square-foot facility in Wawayanda.

“We are pleased to conclude a review process that lasted 18 months and took into account feedback from the Planning Board and community members reflected in the project’s final design,” the company said following Monday night’s Planning Board meeting.

Medline chose to expand in the Town of Montgomery over several out-of-state sites because they wanted to retain their more than 350 local team members and keep the jobs in Orange County.

“This is a critical time for public health as we battle the COVID-19 pandemic,” the company stated. “Our distribution center will be a state-of-the-art facility with expanded capacity to store and transport medical devices to hospitals and nursing homes throughout the Hudson Valley and the tristate area.”

Medline contends that its project would provide the Town with key benefits. Its proposed warehouse would add 400 new team member jobs and 300 new construction positions to build the distribution center. Their taxes would support local schools and services and they would increase their spending with local vendors, benefitting the Town’s economy. Medline would provide financial support for area projects identified through a community benefits agreement. There would be additional capacity for storage of medical products as well as distribution to local healthcare facilities.

In order for the project to be approved, Medline still needs the Planning Board to approve the site plan. They also need the Town Board to sign off on the project’s SEQRA determination.

“I think we’ve cleared some very important milestones in the review process and we’re kind of at the final stage here of our last few approvals by the town,” said Jesse Greenberg, public affairs director at Medline.

The company hopes to begin construction on the project later in the second quarter and complete it in 2021.