From the Elkhart Truth:
Friday afternoon, the Bristol Town Council gave a preliminary thumbs up to an incentive package for Utilimaster Corp., fulfilling a key requirement the manufacturer wanted in return for keeping its operations in Elkhart County.
Council members gave unanimous approval after reviewing the abatement offer with town attorney Glenn Duncan. The final step in the process will be the confirmatory vote that will likely take place at the legislative body’s meeting June 21.
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The truck body manufacturer announced in February plans to vacate its Wakarusa campus and relocate to a single 425,000-square-foot manufacturing facility on Earthway Boulevard. During a press conference outlining the company’s decision to move, Forbes said the state and local incentive packages were still being configured but they were “very important part of the decision making process.”
The Bristol Town Council is offering a package that is spread over two separate resolutions. The agreements do not place a dollar value on the incentives but they do detail what Utilimaster must do to remain in compliance.
The first resolution gives a 10 –year tax abatement in return for Utilimaster doing the following by Dec. 31, 2012:
• investing no less than $2.7 million in real estate improvements;
• investing no less than $4.3 million in new manufacturing and information technology equipment;
• posting an annual payroll, not including fringe benefits, of at least $12.8 million with no less than 402 full time positions;
• compensating every full-time employee with a regular wage of at least $10.50 per hour, not including overtime pay;
• having no more than 40 percent of its workforce be part-time or contract employees.
Also, as part of the first resolution, the town council is declaring the property as an “eligible vacant building” which, according to state statue, allows the company to take a three-year property tax deduction. In the first year, the deduction totals 100 percent, the second year it falls to 50 percent and the third year it returns to 100 percent.
The second resolution offers a 10-year tax abatement on the condition Utilimaster does the following by Dec. 31, 2013:
• investing no less than $1.6 million in real estate improvements;
• investing no less than $950,000 in mew manufacturing equipment and new information technology equipment.
The second resolution also contains the condition that Utilimaster hire at least 85 additional full-time employees and boost its annual payroll by no less than $1.6 million by Dec. 31, 2014. As the first resolution set forth, the average wage must be at least $10.50 per hour and no more than 40 percent of the work force can be part-time or contract employees.
Both resolutions state Utilimaster must remain at the Bristol location until Feb. 28, 2022.
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http://www.etruth.com/article/20120505/BUSINESS/705059921/0/FRONTPAGE
