A proposed King’s Hawaiian bakery facility near Edinburgh in German Township is going to need a lot of dough before it can get on a roll, and local officials are working to see it rise.
The California-based bakery has proposed a $180 million facility on 88 acres it plans to purchase off County Road 200W, just east of Indiana Premium Outlets near Edinburgh, The Republic’s Mark Webber reported recently.
The county has granted tax abatement for the development that promises 147 new jobs with an average wage of $29.94 per hour once the facility is operating. That’s an opportunity that doesn’t come along every day, and county leaders are obviously excited about attracting a quality employer.
But as Webber reported, “the remaining challenges have to do with installing or improving off-site infrastructure such as road improvements, water and sewage.”
For the county, these are literally the costs of doing — and attracting — business. As Bartholomew County Commissioner Tony London noted, King’s or any other business shouldn’t be responsible for the costs of running roads, water or sewer service to the property. Public infrastructure is just that — public — and a growing community such as ours has an obligation to provide an environment that fosters and encourages private investment that creates well-paying jobs.
London and fellow Commissioner Larry Kleinhenz acknowledge the King’s proposal is a large project that will test local resources, including those of Eastern Bartholomew Water Corp. County and utility leaders have been meeting to ensure that everyone is on the same page and understands King’s needs while also moving with a sense of urgency.
Both London and Kleinhenz told Webber that providing this infrastructure is worth public investment, and we agree. This area is ideally suited for tax increment financing, should the county opt to pay for infrastructure using tax dollars captured from future development in this area. No decision on funding methods has been made at this point, but there is no question that an investment in appropriate public infrastructure in this area will pay long-term dividends in jobs and tax base.
We say this because the commissioners are correct in their assessment that this area is a prime location for future development of other large facilities such as King’s. Leaders are wise to view this area as one ripe for growth, plan infrastructure needs accordingly and consider potential public investment scenarios that could put this region ahead of expectations.
“I’m really having a hard time finding a downside to anything we’re doing there,” London said. “The cool thing is, no matter what we do up there, (infrastructure improvement) is going to benefit everybody in the area.”
The area north of Interstate 65’s Exit 76 has been a magnet for development of light industrial and transportation and logistics uses in recent years, and it’s not unrealistic to expect that other development on par with King’s might be in the offing. This is a perfect opportunity for the county and local stakeholders to explore the opportunities — and the potential limitations — of our capacity to provide infrastructure to support future growth in the area.
