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Business incentives
Rice County provides the following economic development incentives, and is committed to meeting the financial and tax needs of our business partners. This includes finding creative solutions to financial needs, helping to identify resources and understanding the role of tax incentives in determining business location and growth needs.
Revolving loans
To stimulate private sector investment in facilities and equipment in order to create/retain jobs for local residents and to upgrade facilities to maintain competitiveness and/or boost productivity; and provide affordable loans for expansion and/or rehabilitation of commercial and industrial buildings in order to maintain the commercial and industrial viability of Rice County and its communities.
- Housing and Redevelopment Authority Revolving Loan Fund Program policy
- Housing and Redevelopment Authority Revolving Loan Fund Program application
Tax abatements
Tax abatement encourages private development projects by allowing the rebate of property taxes to the property owner, reallocating the taxes to pay for public infrastructure costs or deferring the property taxes and rebating the interest penalty.
Business subsidies
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Kathy Feldbrugge
Economic Development Coordinator
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Economic Development
Physical Address
Government Services Building
320 Third St. NW
Faribault, MN 55021
Phone: 507-332-6091Fax: 507-333-3848
- Agreements set the stage for $32M, 70,000 sq. ft. expansion
- Boards give early OK to assistance for planned treatment center
- Tax abatement will help business relocate
A pair of agreements approved Sept. 13, 2022 will help a longtime manufacturer nearly double the size of its facility, automate its processes and upskill its workforce.
Following two public hearings, the Rice County Board of Commissioners and Faribault City Council, meeting in a special joint that evening session, authorized a development contract and 10-year tax abatement for Tru Vue, which manufactures high-performance glass glazing products.
The company, located on 17.3 acres in northwest Faribault. plans to construct a $32 million, 70,000 square-foot expansion. It employs about 160 locally.
The abatement will impact Rice County and city of Faribault property taxes on the new construction only, and will lessen over the 10-year period, beginning in 2025. The exact abatement will be established in January 2024 once the county assessor determines the new construction’s valuation, but is expected to be nearly $700,000 over the 10 years.
While tax abatements are typically associated with job growth, the agreements approved Tuesday ensure the company remains in the city, Faribault Community and Economic Development Director Deanna Kuennen said. The expansion also allows Tru Vue to automate its process and provide employees additional skills.
In an August meeting of the two boards, Kuennen noted that Tru Vue, like companies across the nation, has struggled to fill open positions, using temporary workers to fill the gaps. The automation, she said, will limit its reliance on temps.
“Our goal is to keep existing employees,” Tru Vue Human Resources Director Mandi Morrissey said during the August session.
Jim Purfeerst, Rice County Board of Commissioners chair, was happy to support the plans. “This is a good opportunity to bring economic growth into Rice County,” he said.
Tru Vue and Viracon, which operates an architectural glass manufacturing facility in Owatonna, are both subsidiaries of Apogee Enterprises.
The Rice County Board of Commissioners have agreed in principle to help subsidize a drug and alcohol treatment center set to locate in Faribault.
Support for the $10 million inpatient and outpatient facility proposed by Midwest Recovery came during a Sept. 13, 2022 joint session of the Board of Commissioners and Faribault City Council. The company currently operates an inpatient center for men in Northfield and an outpatient facility in Faribault.
Rice County Sheriff Jesse Thomas, Faribault Police Chief John Sherwin and both of their predecessors have spoken often about the lack of local options for area residents seeking treatment for drug and/or alcohol addiction, and the connection between substance abuse and other crimes such as theft and burglary.
According to information Sherwin shared with both boards, Rice County law enforcement has responded to 21 non-fatal overdoses and six fatal overdoses in the county in the last 12 months.
Data provided by Healthy Community Initiative found Rice County had 28 suspected drug overdoses in 2021.
In 2021, 446 Rice County residents accessed treatment for chemical dependency, according to Sherwin. In 2019, there were 489, with 279 in residential treatment facilities. Only 4% of those could access treatment in the county.
The project, planned for Cardinal Avenue near the interstate will be built in phases. The first will include the outpatient facility. The inpatient facility, including space for those needing to detox, will come two to three years later, said Midwest Recovery President Michael McHugh.
A total of 40 full-time equivalent positions – ranging from $20/hour to $130,000/year – will be created. said Faribault Community and Economic Development Director Deanna Kuennen.
“…Midwest Recovery’s intentions of providing withdrawal management fill a critical and life-saving need in Faribault and Rice County,” Sherwin, and Kuennen said in a memo to both governmental bodies.
Currently, the closest detox facility is in Rochester; transporting individuals there removes an officer and squad car from the community for two hours. The alternative is the emergency room or to jail. But neither, Sherwin said, is a good solution.
“Detoxing is considered a medical condition and we are not long-term medical providers,” said Rice County Jail Administrator Jake Marinenko.
A public hearing on the proposed subsidy will be set for sometime this fall. Both the Board of Commissioners and City Council will then be asked to approve agreements with Midwest Recovery.
The Board of Commissioners has authorized a 10-year tax abatement for a Minneapolis company planning a move to the northern portion of Rice County.
Following a required public hearing Dec. 13, the board authorized an abatement of about $105,000 in taxes over the duration of the agreement.
The company, Scan Air Filter, provides heating, ventilation and air conditioning services for industrial clients. It’s currently located southeast of downtown Minneapolis, but plans to build a new $1.65 million facility in the Lonsdale Business Park off Hwy. 19.
The 2.56-acre parcel has a valuation of $112,000, according to Rice County records.
“Lonsdale is a more desirable location,” Scan VP Operations Pete Johnson said of the move during the board’s Nov. 15 meeting.
Initially, the facility will employ 11 people, but may add another three full-time equivalent positions with a $17 per hour wage.
While the city of Lonsdale is not planning to abate its share of taxes, the city will subsidize about $284,000 in land acquisition and infrastructure costs.
The proposed abatement agreement is structured so 100% of the Rice County taxes will be abated for the first five years, beginning in 2023. The abatement will then be incrementally reduced for the next five.
Tax abatement is one of several tools utilized by local governments, including counties, to attract new businesses or assist existing employers looking to expand.
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Kathy Feldbrugge
Economic Development CoordinatorPhone: 507-332-6091
-
Economic Development
Physical Address
Government Services Building
320 Third St. NW
Faribault, MN 55021
Phone: 507-332-6091Fax: 507-333-3848