Laing Self-Storage recently opened at 151 South Chenango Street Extension in Greene and offers indoor units heated in winter and air-conditioned in summer. (Submitted photo)

GREENE – Brian Laing and his wife operate Laing Self-Storage in Greene, offering indoor storage for residents and businesses needing carefully controlled extra room for their belongings.

At the Greene storage site, customers enter a locked warehouse-like building to reach their individual storage units. Cameras and lighting provide security, and customers use their phones to unlock both the entrance and their units.

The property is located at 151 South Chenango Street Extension, across from Dollar General and Tractor Supply. Storage units range from 5 by 5 feet to 10 by 20 feet, with several sizes in between.

“Everything is run off your phone, so you don’t have to worry about bringing in a lock,” Laing said. “The front door, you gain access from your cellphone, and then once you enter into the building, your storage unit is also accessible via your cellphone.”

The Greene facility is heated in winter and air-conditioned in summer. Laing said temperatures are kept around 55 to 60 degrees during winter and around 75 degrees during summer.

The indoor space gives customers an option for belongings they do not want exposed to extreme temperatures, including furniture, musical instruments and collectibles.

“I have a guy that has his drum set in there, and he just doesn’t want to have it, you know, exposed to the extreme temperatures, whether it’s during the winter or during the summer,” Laing said.

Laing said the business also serves people renovating their homes, households running out of space and businesses looking for room to store files.

“Businesses who want to have, maybe you want to grow, but they don’t have enough space in their current location. Doctors’ offices who need to keep files, but they have to gain access to them easily. So really, it’s kind of anybody who just needs the extra space,” Laing said.

Laing and his wife own and operate the business together and their children help with social media.

“We’re not like your typical big-box self-storage facilities that are located here in Broome County, where they increase your rates every six months. We try to keep our rates very affordable and economical for everybody,” Laing said.

The business began in the Binghamton area. Laing said he has six locations throughout Broome County and described Greene as new locations.

The storage site open from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Sunday, but the building is not accessible overnight.

Laing said the limited hours are to ensure overnight security.

He said there are few such storage units in the area especially for indoor, temperature-controlled storage. Many are primarily outdoor storage, leaving belongings exposed to seasonal temperature changes, he said.

“We’re going to expand in the back, but right now we just want to get the temperature control area fully rented out and let people know that we’re here. We’re in town,” Laing said.