Later, gator: Albany sues Pepsi for pulling out of development deal

The Democrat Herald reports last week that the Albany City Council accepted a $20 million cash settlement in its lawsuit against a subsidiary of PepsiCo.

During the peak of the economic boom in 2006, SVC Manufacturing Inc., part of PepsiCo, had signed a development agreement with Albany to build a Gatorade plant and bottle-making factory on a long-vacant 242 acres in the city.

As the recession was deepening in the fall of 2008, SVC said market conditions had changed and dropped the project. Albany sued for more than $100 million in February 2009 to compensate the local economy for the lost benefits the city had eagerly hoped for.

City Attorney Jim Delapoer tried to blunt local criticism that suing the company had made Albany look hostile to business. He said the process “shows how an American community and a Fortune 50 company worked their way out of a contentious deal.”

Even so, it is obvious to many observers is that Albany has sent a loud message that the city backs up business when times are good, but turns on business when times are bad.