Emporia City Commissioners approved the issuance of bonds for a major development project in Emporia during their recent action session Wednesday.
The $4.3 million in Industrial Revenue Bonds will help finance the cost of purchasing, acquiring, constructing, furnishing and equipping the Roosevelt Plaza and Lofts at 1102 Commercial and The Legacy Lofts 1101 Mechanic Street. City Commissioner Rob Gilligan says the bonds provide two very important benefits for the development.
Gilligan says current indications are the construction process should be wrapping up by late spring. Together the Roosevelt Plaza and Lofts and The Legacy Lofts will bring a total of 47 new residential units to the city of Emporia.
Separately, commissioners also approved a ten-year real estate tax abatement for Cargill, Inc. The abatement follows the addition of a new 50,500 square foot warehouse between 2018-2019 which replaced a leased warehouse located 1 mile from the main manufacturing facility.
According to comments during a presentation by David Belpedio of MarksNelson LLC, consultants for Cargill, there are currently plans from Cargill to continue investing in the local facility, however, nothing is currently set in stone.
Belpedio says the exemption allows Cargill to “maximize the return on the investment.”
A goal for the company in “the next several years” is to hopefully expand operations to a fourth shift which could help bring production to 7 days a week and result in the addition of more employees.
In other business, commissioners awarded a bid to Emporia Construction and Remodeling INC, in the amount of $59,256 for the city’s Hazardous Sidewalk Program. Additionally, the commission approved separate bids for a new solid waste truck and police vehicles, appointed new members to the Emporia Convention and Visitors Advisory Board and Building Trades Board and accepted a general utility easement.
The Emporia City Commission will not meet next week and will reconvene on Wednesday, Mar. 18 at White Auditorium.
