EDA sells Pride Pak 13 acres, approves $2 million tax savings plan

Photo by Tom Rivers – Art Hill Excavation has been doing some of the site work for the new Pride Pak on Maple Ridge Road.

ALBION – Pride Pak, a Canadian company that is building a new 64,000-square-foot vegetable processing plant in Medina, is a new real estate owner in the community.

The company and the Orleans Economic Development Agency today approved a deal where the company will pay $130,000 for 13 acres along Maple Ridge Road. The EDA is selling the land at $10,000 per acre.

The agency will use proceeds from the sale towards infrastructure for the site. Jim Whipple, the EDA chief executive officer, said the $130,000 will cover a portion of the expense.

The Medina Village Board has committed $50,000 and the Shelby Town Board $10,000 to add a sewer line and build an access road. The Town of Shelby, Village of Medina and Orleans County highway crews will provide in-kind work on the road and some of the infrastructure work.

Construction equipment has been at the site for about two weeks with site work underway.

Steve Karr, Pride Pak chief executive officer, would like to have the new building done in late April and then equipment moved in for a June 1 opening. But he said last month that cooperation from Mother Nature over the winter will be a big factor in meeting that schedule.

The EDA board of directors on Friday also approved a 20-year tax savings plan that will save Pride Pak $1,737,75 in property taxes over 20 years. The PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) commits Pride Pak to paying $1,330,204 over 20 years to the Village of Medina, Town of Shelby, Medina Central School, and Orleans County.

The property has been tax exempt and hasn’t generated any taxing revenue. Pride Pak won’t pay any taxes in the first year and will then see its tax bill increase in 5 percent increments over 20 years until it is paying $157,421 in year 20.

The company plans to add 85 to 100 jobs in phase 1 of the project. It expects to add two more buildings after the first one is up and operational next year. Any structures after the first building are not part of the proposed PILOT and those buildings would result in additional tax revenue for the local governments.

Pride Pak says it would have 206 employees at full build-out, making an average of $25,000 the first year, $27,000 the second year and $28,500 after three years.

In addition to the $1,737,75 discount in property taxes on property taxes, the EDA approved a sales tax exemption for $320,400, and an exemption on the mortgage tax worth $65,000 or 1 percent of $6.5 million. That puts the total incentives over $2 million.

The EDA will administer the PILOT and will be paid an estimated $251,000 for its services with the project.