An incentive to attract industry and benefit existing industries in the county is under consideration by the Greene County board of supervisors.
The supervisors at their regular meeting June 29 heard information from county assessor Linda Spearman about an industrial tax exemption for the Bauer plant just outside the Paton city limits.
Spearman and auditor Jane Heun had conflicting information about the amount and duration of such a credit allowed by the Code of Iowa, but both agreed the county could enact an ordinance allowing the credit. The credit would mimic urban revitalization credits now available in municipalities, including Jefferson. It would apply only to industrial sites not in incorporated towns.
The credit would be awarded by the supervisors on a case-by-case basis only after an application from the industry. It would apply only to the improvements on the property. In the case of the Bauer property, it would not apply to the truck parking area or to the new gas station/convenience store.
Spearman said future industrial growth could be a boon to the county. “Why would we not want industrial in the county? It produces jobs. They’re huge. They pay a lot of taxes,” she said.
She used the Louis Dreyfus ethanol plant in Grand Junction as an example. Farm ground that was valued at $234,000 is now an industrial site valued at $6 million. “You have to look at all the positives. There are more positives than there are negatives. That’s the way it is,” Spearman said. The farm ground had a 45 percent state rollback on it. She said that even with the state’s 90 percent industrial rollback, the increase in tax revenue to the county is significant.
The feed mill proposed by Cargill just east of Grand Junction could qualify for the credit, should the county enact an ordinance, Spearman said.
