ENTERPRISE ZONE

The first two projects equate to approximately $7MM in local investment. They create jobs, reward sustainability, provide a 3-5 year partial tax abatement incentive and soon will create revenue for each of the taxing districts (Corvallis, Benton County, LBCC, 509J, etc).

T. Gerding Construction’s application has been approved and have begun building their new headquarters across the street from the FedEx building on Airport Avenue.  Natural Point, now fully approved, will build in the space at the northeast corner of South Corvallis’ industrial land (the site once approved for a home improvement center and considered for a car lot).

There exists an opportunity to expand the Enterprise Zone to include other industrial areas in Benton County.  In order to move the expansion forward, a meeting was held to explore potential sites being considered and to provide feedback to and from  taxing districts.  Some of the sites being considered include:

— Sunset Research Park

— Reservoir Avenue

— Hewlett Packard

— McFadden Industrial Site (just south of Hewlett Packard)

In order to move forward on the expansion, it is important to have input from the business community and other groups with   a strong interest in Benton County’s economic development efforts.