VERONA, N.Y. — As the battle for talent continues, the Oneida Indian Nation has upped the ante for potential new employees with its new $15 million The Villages at Stoney Creek employee housing units. The units, which will open July 1, are for new full-time, hourly, non-management positions and will help the Oneida Indian Nation […]
VERONA, N.Y. — As the battle for talent continues, the Oneida Indian Nation has upped the ante for potential new employees with its new $15 million The Villages at Stoney Creek employee housing units.
The units, which will open July 1, are for new full-time, hourly, non-management positions and will help the Oneida Indian Nation combat one of the biggest hurdles it has encountered in trying to recruit new employees, Joel Barkin, VP of communications, says.
“Housing is the number one issue for everyone,” he says.
The Oneida Indian Nation has targeted the Albany, Rochester, and even Buffalo areas as it works to recruit new employees, Barkin notes. “Not having dedicated housing is a real barrier to do that.” It also employs a large number of refugees at its various business enterprises, especially Turning Stone Resort Casino, and housing is often an issue for refugees as well, he adds.
The first two buildings open to tenants July 1 with the remaining three expected to open by September, Barkin notes. The Syracuse–based construction firm Hayner Hoyt Corporation served as general contractor for the project.
The Villages at Stoney Creek consists of 50 units, a mix of one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom units. Rather than go for taller buildings packed full of apartments, The Villages has a community feel with multiple smaller buildings with plenty of green space in between for tenants to enjoy. Amenities include in-unit laundry, reserved parking spaces, and a shuttle to Turning Stone.
Providing the shuttle helps remove another barrier for potential employees, giving them an easy way to get to work and back, Barkin notes. He expects most tenants will work at Turning Stone, where the resort is experiencing critical shortages in several areas including cooks, casino dealers, hotel operations, and custodial positions.
The Oneida Indian Nation subsidizes the apartments to keep the rent affordable with units going for $550 for a one-bedroom apartment, $650 for a two-bedroom, and $750 for a three-bedroom unit.
Building and subsidizing employee housing is a solution that not all businesses can undertake, Barkin notes. “Because the Nation is geographically tied to the area ... it can make these decisions where it can build long-term infrastructure.”
Being able to offer housing to new employees, especially those from outside of the immediate area is a huge bonus, says Linda Aloisio, president of the Home Builders & Remodelers Association of the Mohawk Valley.
“That particular end of the market is an endangered species,” she notes of mid-priced units like those at The Villages at Stoney Creek. Such units are great for single people looking for an apartment they can afford on one salary, she explains.
The addition of the shuttle, as people are looking for ways to cut their commute amid high gas prices, is just icing on the cake. “To me, that would be a very big incentive to work for them,” she says.
As the largest employer in Oneida and Madison counties, with more than 4,000 employees currently and plans to reach 4,500 employees by year’s end, the Oneida Indian Nation expects The Villages at Stoney Creek to be just the first phase of employee-housing development.