The two pieces of legislation were slated to be considered at council’s March 17 meeting. However, they were pulled because the city did not provide the required 14-day notice to the Middletown Board of Education as it regarded the consideration of a tax abatement. The city administration had requested council approve both ordinances as emergencies so that they took immediate effect. Friday’s action also enabled the company to finalize the financial package by March 31, city officials said.
The enterprise zone agreement calls for the city to grant NTE Ohio a 10-year, 75 percent tax abatement for the approximately $500 million project to be constructed west of the Greentree Business Park.
The company is expected to hire about 25 new full-time permanent employees with an estimated annual payroll of $2.15 million and generate $36,000 a year in city income taxes after the plant starts operations, according to city officials.
During the abatement period, the school district would receive a reimbursement of 50 percent of the city income taxes collected as required by state law. According to the enterprise zone agreement, NTE Ohio has agreed to reimburse the city for the income tax sharing requirements to the school district. The total value of this portion of this agreement is projected to be $400,000 or more a year over the term of the abatement.
The project is estimated to generate $24 million in payroll during the three-year construction period. During this time there will be an estimated 200 full-time temporary construction jobs created.
The city is also working on a contract to provide water and sewer services to the plant. Once in operation, NTE Ohio would be the city’s largest water user at 2.1 million gallons a day.
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