by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
The Jacksonville Economic Development Commission Thursday approved two projects that will allow two local companies to not just stay in business, but also expand.
Trend Offset Printing Services, Inc. got the OK from the Commission for $90,000 worth of Florida Qualified Targeted Industry Tax Refunds. The State’s portion is $72,000 (80 percent) while the City’s is $18,000 (20 percent). Trend — which is based in Los Catalina, Ca. — plans to invest nearly $12 million in its Imeson Industrial Park facility through expansion and the purchase of an $11.5 million press. The company will also add 30 jobs at an average of $41,516 annually to its current staff of 185 employees.
According to JEDC project manager Joe Whitaker, the company was looking at Texas, Jacksonville or a new location in the Midwest.
Bill Fleegle, general manager of Trend, said when he joined the company in 2000, Trend had 40 employees and did $5 million worth of business. Last year, he said, Trend did between $45 million and $48 million.
“We turned away $6.2 million in sales last year,” said Fleegle, explaining the business was turned away because Trend didn’t have the equipment or the space to house the equipment. He said the new press will require Trend to add upwards of 60,000 square feet in addition to the 30 new employees.
Fleegle also said Trend was considering Cincinnati or Pittsburgh, and he’d be required to move to either.
“I’d really like to stay in Jacksonville and so would my wife,” said Fleegle, adding he’s been to Pittsburgh.
The JEDC also approved a QTI of $272,000 for J.C. Renfroe & Sons, Inc. That QTI also includes a Brownfield Redevelopment Bonus. The State will pay $217,600 (80 percent) while the City’s portion is $54,400 (20 percent). The Springfield company has been in existence since 1942 and manufacturers steel lifting clamps. The plan is to invest $4 million to remodel and expand its plant, purchase additional machinery and equipment and create 32 new full-time jobs at an average of $45,178 annually. The company’s clamps are sold all over the world and it plans to enter into a partnership with a company from Spain that will allow them to expand into the South American market.
Ron Raymond, vice president/general manager of Renfroe, told the Commission it was the desire of the Renfroe family to secure the deal with the Spanish company and add to the Jacksonville facility rather than move a portion to a location in Texas.
“This is the kind of project that incentives are all about,” said Commissioner Charles Appleby. “This is why the JEDC was created.”
Both projects were unanimously approved by the nine-member JEDC and require City Council approval.
In other news:
• Thursday’s meeting was the last for Appleby, who was appointed to the JEDC four years ago.
“You were always willing to work on the tough jobs,” said JEDC Chair Bob Rhodes.
Appleby was perhaps best known for his public scrutiny of JEDC projects, something that was not lost on JEDC Executive Director Ron Barton.
“In the halls of the JEDC when we would critique a project, we would say, ‘What would Charlie ask?’ And, that’s probably the highest honor. It made the organization better and it made the deals we brought forth better,” said Barton.
“In some cases, I raked people over the coals,” said Appleby. “That was not purposefully, but for the good of the city.”
• The new “Enhanced Municipal Services Agreement” between the JEDC and Downtown Vision, Inc. has been drafted and the new agreement contains a section that will require DVI to comply with the Sunshine Laws.
DVI Executive Director Terry Lorince has maintained in the past that due to DVI’s not-for-profit status, the organization was exempt from all public records laws and regulations.
However, the Office of General Counsel has decided DVI is 100 percent publicly funded, thus subject to the Sunshine Laws. DVI is funded through a combination of a special property tax assessment on Downtown property owners within the 60 square-block Business Improvement District and money from the City. Under the new agreement, DVI will have to comply with both the State public meeting and public records laws.
Barton also addressed the Commission about future projects and the potential need to keep the names of the companies confidential. While the JEDC must operate almost entirely under the purview of the state’s Sunshine Laws, Barton said there is a state statute that permits the JEDC staff to keep a company name confidential through nearly the entire process — from application to finally receiving the incentives.
Barton said when he joined the JEDC two years ago, he was surprised to find out the JEDC made the company names public when economic development projects were introduced.
“I think that’s a great thing, but there’s a state statute that allows companies to enter the application process and remain anonymous,” he said, adding the “modus operandi” at the JEDC has always been to publicize the names. However, since then, Barton said, “I have had companies ask to be treated in confidence under state law.”
According to Barton, there are several reasons a company may want to work with the JEDC yet keep those dealings private and out of the local media. There may be Securities & Exchange Commission issues as well as local issues, especially if the company is looking to relocate to Jacksonville and possibly close its current operation.
John Haley, vice president of business recruitment for the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce’s Cornerstone initiative, said these instances would be rare, possibly once a year or less often. Haley said the company may also be looking at union issues that have to be resolved before a possible relocation can be made public.
“You may know everything about the company except the name,” Haley told the Commission, adding before the company receives any kind of economic benefit, the name must then become public knowledge.