Photo provided An artist’s rendition of a proposed food and beverage facility proposed to be located in Edinburgh near I-65.
The Bartholomew County Council has approved real and personal property tax abatements for a company that is planning to invest a little under $200 million to create a new food manufacturing plant near Edinburgh.
The abatements were requested by R & T Woodside LLC on behalf of King’s Hawaiian, which is looking to build its new manufacturing facility at 11900 N. County Road 200W in German Township, just east of Indiana Premium Outlets in Edinburgh.
The company plans to invest up to $180 million for the initial project, which is expected to create 147 new jobs with an average wage of $29.94 per hour, according to Greater Columbus Economic Development Corp. President Jason Hester.
The green light from the council came Tuesday, a day after the Bartholomew County Commissioners voted to consent to the tax abatements.
During the meeting, several county council members expressed their excitement that the company had selected Bartholomew County to build the new facility.
“Even though, yes, they took into consideration the financial incentive to come, their greatest interest was based on how they fit into the community, and they’re very community oriented,” said Bartholomew County Council Jorge Morales during the meeting. “…I think that we are going to see another company coming to Bartholomew County that will be (equal to) Cummins in participating within the community.”
Joe Leonardo, SVP, Chief Operations Officer at King’s Hawaiian, said in a previous interview that the initial plant will be King’s Hawaiian. He added that they’ve acquired enough land to do other things with the site as well — such as expanding the footprint of King’s Hawaiian or bringing another brand to the area — but these are just possibilities rather than concrete plans.
While King’s Hawaiian will be spending about $90 million for machinery and equipment, Hester said in a previous interview that only about $85 million will be eligible under the 10-year tax abatement request. However, the company will invest another $80 to $90 million to purchase 88 acres of land and construct the buildings.
All those improvements are eligible for tax abatement, he said. King’s Hawaiian is asking for a standard phase-in over 10 years. If approved, the amount of property taxes on real and personal property will gradually increase every year until the abatement period ends.
Hester said previously that the taxes being paid on the property before the abatement will continue to be paid. Only increased property taxes resulting from development are subject to a tax abatement.
“The tax today on the property generates just under $2,200 a year,” he said. “With this tax phase-in because of the sizable investment … we expect the company will have paid $1.8 million over 10 years in real property tax, plus another $2.2 million in property tax.”
During that same time, the company is expected to save approximately $1.35 million in real property taxes and $3.4 million in personal property taxes due to the proposed abatement.
After the abatement period ends, it’s estimated that they would pay about $316,000 per year in real property taxes and $394,000 per year in personal property taxes, Hester said.
By Andy East of The (Columbus) Republic, which is a sister newspaper to the Daily Journal.
