Dave DeWitte, CR Gazette –
Target Corp. has been granted $2.27 million more in state tax credits because it added 199 jobs and invested $50.6 million more than planned in its Cedar Falls food distribution center.
The Iowa Department of Economic Development Board approved the request Friday from Minneapolis-based Target, which received incentives under the High Quality Job Creation program in July 2007.
Target’s perishable foods distribution center in Cedar Falls was completed on Oct. 7, 2009. It employs over 250, and supplies the company’s stores in Iowa and nearby areas of the Midwest.
Target has experienced stronger than expected growth in its grocery segment throughout the region, the company said in a letter to the state, and far exceeded the state grant’s job requirement of 51 and its investment requirement of $76.2 million. The company had until July 30 to create the jobs and investment.
The food distribution center, one of two Target distribution centers in Cedar Falls, accounts for 250 jobs and $126.7 million in investment, the company said.
The success of the facility “is due in no small part to the strong relationship that Target has developed over the years with the IDEA,” Jennifer Romans, Target manager of state income tax controversy and planning in a letter to the state.
Target calculated the additional tax incentives it requested by applying the same 4.5 percent factor to its $126.78 million project investment as it was granted on its original grant based on $76.2 million of investment.
Iowa Economic Development Authority spokeswoman Tina Hoffman said that retroactively requesting larger tax incentives when a project exceeds expectations is not unusual.
With tax credits, “it’s just an estimate because you’re doing these things before the project gets started,” Hoffman said.
The increased credit will allow Target to continue investing through the expansion of the Cedar Falls warehouse and construction of its stores in the state, Target’s Romans said.
Just a note, Weaver was dead set against this and battled against it…don’t blame this one on the A-Teamers. The B-teamers messed this one up.
In talking with one of their executives a few years back here are his reasons Cedar Falls was picked over MC.
-Youthful and better trained labor force
– State-of-the-art fiber optics municipal owned communications system
– Built infrastructure in existing municipal owned industrial park
– Free land with no potential zoning issues in available industrial park
– More executive job opportunities for spouses of management
– More cultural and entertainment venues
– Better educational advancement opportunities
– More recreational opportunities (110 miles of recreational trails and a state-of-the-art municipal owned recreation center
– Historic and attractive downtown entertainment district
In other words, MC never had a chance…
People still complain about moving forward with projects like these in Mason City… Um, hello, McFly???? If you build it they will come!
Unless you have seen this massive distrubution center in Cedar Falls, you would not believe it.
It is the size of our industrial park to walmart, and fill that space in.
We missed the boat on this one big time, and they are still building down there!
Target says that Cedar Falls was chosen because at the time they made the location choice there was not enough available qualified labor. In Cedar Falls they can hire students. When you are trying to attract business you need to be able to provide 10 decent applicants for evey open position. In this area, at that time, we couldn’t provide 2,500 applicants. Cedar Falls could.
@Anonymous…I can understand the thinking about having an applicant pool, but I find it difficult to believe that the Mason City area and surrounding communities couldn’t supply job applicants. I would have to think that many of the jobs for working in a warehouse would require many of the same skills the displaced workers from our local factories possess (Holcim, Curries, Kraft, IMI, etc.)
Granted, there would be those positions that require more training or a degree, but I would think Target would have the resources to transfer or attract that level of employee. I feel that Mason City just continually loses out on jobs that many would be happy to fill.
Please reread what I wrote. Note the phrase “in this area, at THAT time.” The Target proposal was brought forward back in the 1990s at a time when this region had historically low unemployment. I did not live here at the time, but my understanding is that Target did a labor analysis and this region could have not provided the requisite workforce. This is based on statements Target made. There is ample land in Mason City. It was a labor driven decision. Today, it is likely that they could find workers, but the reality of the current economy is completely different. Mason City spends too much time rehashing the past. Look forward!
What caused Mason City to lose this opportunity? I didn’t live here then, and I’d be curious to know. Thanks
Rumor has it that the only land shown to Target was McNider’s property where Wal. Mart is at. It was way over price and Target wanted to be close to the avenue where the new water tower is at. Another rumor is thatRobin Anderson from the chamber is some how related to the McNider family and was only interested in selling there land and would not help Target in purchasing the property they did want.
Thanks for the update. What a lost opportunity! So many jobs lost that provided a range of skill levels and pay. You would think that we’d have so many business opportunities with the close location of the Avenue and I-35. It actually seems were losing businesses thanks to our local inept representatives. It’s interesting to think how Mason City would be thriving if we had the Target Distribution center and the casino. Too many self-serving people in positions that dicatate our local business climate!
Before a potential business ever steps foot in the City, they know what land is available. The contention that the only land they were shown was MacNiders property is unproven and highly unlikely. Thank you for being honest that
these are “rumors.”
Anonymous, Any piece of land is for sale for the right price. Nobody knows what that price would have been or even if the land owner was ever contacted. i feel it was a lack of effort.
Leave it to the A TEAM to screw us all!!
This could have been Mason City’s but for our city leaders who blew it.
All those trucks and peoples’ cars going to work there would have caused too much pollution for here anyways. Let another town have the jobs we apparantly don’t need them here.