Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
The Sweet Home City Council approved a resolution Jan. 22 that will allow five years of property tax exemptions for the Georgia-Pacific mill in Halsey, a part of Sweet Home’s enterprise zone.
Because Sweet Home’s enterprise zone had room left within its boundaries, City Manager Craig Martin said, the zone incorporated land in the Halsey area at the behest of Linn County economic development advocates.
Georgia-Pacific is planning some $48 million in investment at its Halsey plant, which manufactures tissue paper. That qualifies the plant for three years of property tax exemptions for the new value.
To receive a fourth and fifth year of tax exemptions, the investment must pay the new employees at 150 percent of Linn County’s average annual wage, Martin said. It also must provide a 10-percent increase in the number of jobs the company provides.
However, for investments larger than $25 million, the state allows a waiver from the requirement, said John Pascone, Albany-Millersburg Economic Development Corporation president.
The company must enter an agreement that maintains a minimum employment level with the zone’s sponsor, the city of Sweet Home, Martin said. The Linn County Board of Commissioners also must approve the agreement by passing a resolution.
Linn County’s average wage is $33,000, Pascone told the council. Georgia-Pacific will have to provide wages of $50,000 per year to continue qualifying for the tax exemption.
“There’s an extra kicker in there if the company can meet the income,” he said. “Usually it happens but not always.”
Larger companies usually invest to improve efficiency and production, mainly to retain jobs rather than create new jobs, Pascone said. That’s why the state allows a waiver for investments that are large enough.
Georgia-Pacific plans to hire 15 new employees with the investment, he said. To meet the usual requirement, it would have to hire more than 40.
The plant employs about 450, Rodney Bond of Georgia-Pacific told the council. Of those employees, about 47 are from Sweet Home.
The improvements will include a new 60,000-square-foot structure along with remodeling and retooling, he said. “We’re still using stuff from 1968.”
In other business, the council:
– Renewed Municipal Court Judge Larry Blake’s contract as an employee rather than an independent contractor based on recent IRS rulings regarding independent contractors. He will be paid $2,000 per month prior to deductions and be included in the city’s medical, dental and vision plans.
– Held the first reading of an ordinance to vacate an eight-foot strip of city right-of-way located beneath the front part of the building located at 926 Main St.