1. Greeley’s TIF Toolbox
EDCC Overview
2017: Oct 3

2. Urban Renewal Redevelopment District & Tax Increment Areas
Becky
Other Economic Development Initiatives & Tools
Tax Increment Districts

3. Western Sugar TIF Urban Renewal Case Study
Say Cheese!
Western Sugar TIF
Urban Renewal Case Study

4. Who is Leprino Foods?
World’s largest manufacturer of mozzarella cheese, supplying such operations as Pizza Hut, Domino’s & Papa Johns as well as individual cheese products through Wal-Mart and other food retailers
Operates plants in the US, including one in Ft. Morgan, and two in the United Kingdom. HQ based in Denver CO
Sought another mid-continent site for new prototype operation

5. Project Overview: LF Site Criteria
+/- 100 acre site
Reliable water supply
Good transportation access
Industrial zoning for large scale manufacturing
Development incentives to compete favorably with competing Kansas site
Cooperative development review process

6. Western Sugar Site: Assets
100 acre: of sufficient size
For sale
Rail Spur and Hwy access
Within GURA Tax Increment District
Adequate supply of dairies nearby
In Enterprise Zone; site and industry eligible for additional economic development incentives (Ent. Zone, State tax credits, etc.)

7. Western Sugar Site: Issues
Building obsolete, to be removed
Hazardous materials (asbestos)
Oil and gas wells
800,000cy of waste lime deposit
UP denied rail access
Flood Plain
Airport influence area

8. Economic Incentives
City: 50% waived sales and use tax (for > $10m in construction + essential job creation)
City: Industrial Water Bank rates (raw water purchase) and redundancy support with wastewater discharge
City & GURA: each owned adjacent parcels; able to sell LF some add’l land for lagoons/treatment
GURA TIF: up to 98% of property tax rebated over 20-yr life of district for eligible site development costs (infrastructure, hazard removal, etc.); was the ‘but for’ incentive, made deal possible

9. Process Land acquisition negotiated (Leprino & Western Sugar)
City incentives, water/wastewater incentives & support negotiated through a Development Agreement
Tax Increment Financing negotiated with the Greeley Urban Renewal Authority as part of a Redevelopment & Reimbursement Agreement
Variety of land use approvals
Along the way to the Deal….
Extensive Problem-solving (lime removal, work around o/g wells)
Site surprises with excavation (new, hot asbestos dump)
The Economy (local bank failure, dairy/ag loans at risk, governmental budget impacts, eve of not-so-Great Recession )

10. Economic Impact to Area
Projected Leprino investment of $270+ million (1st 2 phases) to generate economic benefits over 20 years of:
City of Greeley: $325.1 million
Weld County: $4.8 billion
Colorado: $10.1 billion
2017: Company has commenced Phase 3 plant expansion, with an initial investment of $190million, adding to the ~ $600 million already invested, adding over 200k sf of working space to the existing facility

11. Building Perspective - Scale

12. Questions ?