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LETTER: Robin Anderson plans Prestage pork plant meeting at Park Inn

In a letter delivered to NIT Wednesday evening, it appears Mason City Chamber of Commerce Director Robin Anderson is planning a meeting on the Prestage Foods hog processing plant that was already voted down. The meeting is allegedly set for June 2, 9:30 AM and is for person she designates as “centers of influence” and “volunteer leaders of local boards”.

Here is the letter:

Robin Anderson
Robin Anderson

Thank you so much for your service to the students and families of Mason City. It appears your volunteer job has been especially difficult recently; we appreciate the time and effort you spend on behalf of the community.

I regret the school board did not receive a special briefing on the Prestage project. I imagine it was disconcerting to have your superintendent speak at the city council podium in support of a project without the full knowledge and support of the board of education.

The Chamber Board (at our request) received a thorough briefing early-on about the proposed pork processing plant. We had the opportunity to ask questions about workforce, water and wastewater capacity, environmental impacts, etc. As a result, we provided a Resolution of Support at the first public meeting. Because many other stakeholders as well as the general public, did NOT receive the facts on this project in a timely manner, the end result has been a great deal of misunderstanding, misinformation, and acrimony which has divided our community. To me, it feels an awful lot like the Vision Iowa ordeal.

The Chamber and NI Corridor EDC are putting together a meeting for “centers of influence” and volunteer leaders of local boards at 9:30 AM on Thursday, June 2 at the Historic Park Inn. Chamber Board Chair Steve Noto wants to hold this meeting at the hotel as a reminder to people that the Vision Iowa project was voted down TWICE by our city council—and had we not pulled it from the flames, Mason City would certainly be a very different place today.

Debi Durham, director of the Iowa Economic Development Authority (formerly IDED), has agreed to come, and we will have a representative from Prestage, and someone who can speak to environmental concerns, etc. We’ve asked former superintendent Keith Sersland (currently a consultant for public schools) to provide some information on how the proposed plant will impact local schools. Each of the presenters will be a neutral party.

The goal of this meeting will be to arm stakeholders with FACTS regarding the proposed facility. Our ultimate goal is to have a new development agreement with Prestage brought to the council table for consideration that will be supported by our community. We believe it is very likely the plant will ultimately be built in North Iowa—and if this is the case—we would like the bulk of the economic benefit to come to Mason City.

You’ll receive a formal invitation to this event next week, but I wanted to reach out to you now so you will have as much lead time as possible to get this on your calendar. In the meantime, if you have any questions or concerns, please let me know.

Robin

Robin Anderson, MA CCE IOM
President & CEO
Mason City Chamber of Commerce
9 N Federal Avenue
Mason City, IA 50401
641.423.5724

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