To all,
As promised, I'll try and keep everyone updated as to the new Jabil building being renovated. As I mentioned earlier, I only live about 5 miles away. Does anyone find it interesting that Nortel and Jabil will be practically side by side??
Billerica offers tax breaks to 2 firms Billerica offers tax breaks to 2 firms
Saturday September 18, 1999
By JOHN WOLFSON
Sun Staff
BILLERICA -- Town officials are close to finalizing tax incentive agreements with two high-tech firms that could bring more than 1,000 new jobs over the next few years.
Nortel Networks and << Jabil>> Circuit are asking Billerica for the tax breaks in exchange for multimillion-dollar investments in the town. Town Meeting will be asked to approve the deals next month.Nortel Networks is upgrading its Technology Park Drive offices and has begun construction on a new 150,000-square-foot facility in the industrial park. The computer networking company is also considering a third project in the park. The two projects already under way constitute a $70 million investment in facilities, machinery and equipment and will result in as many as 450 new jobs. The third buildout would be an additional $60 million investment and would mean up to 350 new jobs.
Meanwhile, custom electronics manufacturer << Jabil>> circuit is set to move into 222,000 square feet in the old Raytheon Co. building in the Riverview Commerce Center. It will invest $18 million in the facility and create more than
250 jobs in the near future. The terms of the tax increment financing (TIF) agreements remain under negotiation, but Town Assessor Richard Scanlon did reveal some general
information about the proposed deals. Both companies would continue to pay the full real estate tax on their facilities' current assessed value. However, they are looking for concessions on the increased value their expansions and renovations will create. Nortel is looking for a 15-year TIF under which it would pay in the first year
only a certain percentage of the tax on the increased real estate value, Scanlon said. That percentage would increase each year of the deal. In the final few years, Nortel would be paying nearly all the tax but would still receive a small
break so that it could continue to take advantage of state tax incentives. << Jabil>> is seeking a similar arrangement, though its TIF would run only 10 years.
If Nortel moves forward with the third project it is considering for Technology Park Drive -- and word should come down by spring -- the company would employ close to 3,000 workers at its Billerica facilities alone, Scanlon said. Beyond the 250 jobs in the near future, << Jabil's>> Billerica operation has the potential for 700 to 1,000 jobs, he said. "They're two solid, international companies," Scanlon said. "This is excellent growth for Billerica."
Town Manager Richard Montuori revealed another aspect of the agreement that would benefit the town. Similar to a deal worked out with Welch's, another company that has a TIF agreement, both Nortel and << Jabil>> have agreed to provide the town with money each year for community investment. Nortel will put $75,000 into a fund every year for 10 years, while <<Jabil>> will contribute $40,000 for 10 years, Montuori said. Billerica may use the money however it sees fit. "These are quality companies," Montuori said. "They're the kind of companies that communities want."
Selectmen Chairman Ellen Rawlings spoke in support of the TIFs. "I see this agreement as affirming Nortel's commitment as making Billerica the headquarters to this now very large company," she said. << Jabil>> will provide "good jobs with benefits that people can raise families on," she added.
Rawlings said the interest in Billerica on the part of the two companies says a lot about the town's quality of life and well-trained work force. |
