One incorporated company and one new Franklin entrant were granted tax breaks on Monday for planned investments totaling $72 million.
Cold Summit, an Idaho-based real estate developer, has been approved for a 10-year property tax break for a $70 million speculative cold storage building on Graham Road and Earlywood Drive north of Franklin. According to city documents, the 350,000-square-foot building was to be annexed to the city in 2021 and built on a 36-acre site with rezoning for industrial lighting.
The company exclusively develops refrigeration facilities strategically located in ports, population centers and where food is grown. According to Joe South, director of development at Cold Summit, this will be the company’s first project in Indiana.
The company has built multiple single-tenant and multi-tenant refrigerated warehouses across the country over the past three years. South said the Franklin facility will be divided into several storage spaces that can be used to grow small to medium-sized businesses in the cold storage industry.
“The overall idea is that the tax relief program will allow young and growing businesses to gain a strategic advantage here and bring more jobs to the community,” South said. Told. That’s what really matters to us. We want to build the best facility possible and we want to be able to have a wide range of high quality tenants here that can go to market and create long term jobs in the community. I’m here. “
The facility has yet to have tenants signed in, according to Dana Monson, a community development specialist in Franklin, but city officials and developers are hoping the spot will be available as the cold storage market is currently heating up. I’m sure it will fill up quickly. While this refrigeration facility is also attractive in that it can accommodate a variety of tenants, the existing refrigeration facility at Interstate Warehouse in Franklin is said to hold food only. she said.
The relief will save Cold Summit $9.3 million and pay $11.6 million in taxes over the 10-year relief period.
Property owners currently pay $1,600 in taxes annually. This translates to $16,600 over 10 years and $33,200 over 20 years. The investment will bring him $11.6 million in taxes over 10 years and $32.5 million over 20 years, according to tax estimates compiled by the city.
“This kind of increase[in valuations]spreads the cost over everyone and keeps the tax base low for residents,” Monson said. “And this allows us to continue to provide the same quality of service that we have always had, and to provide even better quality of service.”
Instead of the typical 2% economic development fee that the city requires of tax-relief businesses, the company requested that 5% of its gross income be donated to benefit the students of the Franklin Community School. The Council unanimously approved this alternative reduction.
South said the company donates 5% of its profits to any school district that builds speculative buildings. Additionally, the company typically owns the property on which the building was constructed, and when the property is sold, the proceeds will also be donated to the school, he said.
Cold Summit also pledged to commit $500,000 to help the city improve the intersection of Graham Road and Earlywood Drive. The road will be used by the public and will provide access to the building, he said.
GMI Corporation, 700 International Dr., was also approved for $2.7 million in five-year capital savings on new equipment. Originally called Greenwood Machine, the company was founded in 1990 and has had a manufacturing facility in Franklin for 17 years.
The device will speed up existing manufacturing processes, allowing components for medical devices used in breast biopsies to be produced much faster, said Jeff Osler, GMI’s finance director. The work, which now operates seven machines 24 hours a day, seven days a week, will be completed in two shifts over five days using the new machines, he said.
This efficiency will allow the company to expand into new product lines and plan further growth at the facility, Osler said.
“But what’s even more impressive is that we can free up seven additional machines that we are currently using to add more capacity, which opens up the market,” says Osler. “A few months ago we bought the land we live on now. We bought (almost) 2 acres (1.7 acres) next door. This is a great opportunity to join Franklin and help grow jobs.”
To run the new machine, the company also plans to add six new jobs with an average starting salary of $18 an hour, increasing to $24 after training, city documents show. .
The relief will save GMI $98,200 and the company will pay more than $179,000 in taxes over the five-year relief period. The company will also pay the city his 2% economic development fee.
