BC 2005 10 03 RECESSED - Laserfiche WebLink

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October 3, 2005 - Recessed Meeting / work Session Page 349 The Board of Commissioners for the County of Cabarrus met in a recessed session/work session in the Multipurpose Room at the Cabarrus County Governmental Center in Concord, North Carolina on Monday, October 3, 2005, at 3 :30 p.m. Present - Chairman: Carolyn B. Carpenter vice Chairman: Robert W. Carruth Commissioners: Robert M. Freeman Joni D. Juba Coy C. Privette Also present were John D. Day, County Manager; Jr., County Attorney; Frankie F. Bonds, Clerk to Honeycutt, Deputy Clerk to the Board. Fletcher L. the Board; Hartsell, and Kay Chairman Carpenter called Chairman Carruth was not present the meeting to for the beginning order at 3:38 of the meeting. p.m. vice Commissioner Freeman gave the invocation. Presentation by Cabarrus Arts Council Noelle Scott, Executive Director of the Cabarrus Arts Council, expressed appreciation to the Board for allowing the Cabarrus Arts council to move into the Historic Courthouse. She stated the Council's plans to add sound equipment, lights and curtains during its first year in the facility. As a token of appreciation, Ms. Scott provided a cake for the work session. Incentive Grant for Wight Lightning Motorsports, LLC Ryan McDaniels of the Cabarrus Economic Development Corporation (EDC) presented a request by wight Lightning Motorsports, LLC, for a Level 1 incentive grant pursuant to the Industrial Incentive Development program guidelines effective January 1, 2004. The company plans to build a 189,500 square foot facility in the Oakmont Industrial Park in Concord. The estimated investment is approximately $18.2 million ($15.7 million real estate and $2.5 million equipment) with 120 new jobs planned. Mr. McDaniels reported the company is also looking at sites in the Mooresville/Charlotte area. Mr. including of pay for McDaniels responded to several questions concerning plans for three race teams, other competing locations the 120 planned jobs. the company, and the rate UPON MOTION of Commissioner Privette, seconded by Chairman Carpenter with Chairman Carpenter and Commissioners Freeman, Juba and Privette voting for, the Board agreed to schedule a public hearing on the incentive grant request by wight Lightning Motorsports, LLC, at 6:30 p.m. on October 17, 2005. Incentive Grant Program Options Clay Andrews, EDC Recruiter, presented a brief overview of the Cabarrus County Industrial Incentive Program and a comparison of the County's program with other governments in the Charlotte region. He offered the following recommended revisions to make the incentive program more competitive: (1) Standard county-wide rebate of 85 percent of the company's tax bill; (2) Term of three years; (3) Required minimum capital investment of $1.5 million in land, improvements and machinery; (4) Businesses engaged in manufacturing, distribution, corporate officesl R&D, and call centers are eligible for the rebate; (5) Add more years to be competitive; and (6) If the investment is greater than $30 million, negotiate on a case-by-case basis. Mr. Andrews also recommended that the program allow for the County to consider other factors such as the following: industry type; impact on infrastructure; diversity; quality and quantity of jobs created; potential future expansions; site specific issues such as noise, sewer, and run-off; and the environmental impact. Further, Mr. Andrews listed a number of benefits of revising the County/s incentive program. These included the following: (1) Gets 100 percent of tax payments on the books faster; (2) Business friendly minimizes paper and confusing requirements; (3) Use of same forms; (4) Easy to monitor; (5) Greater flexibility; and (6) Takes leadership role in regional cooperation.