By Brandon Martin
The Henry County Industrial Development Authority (IDA) approved three performance agreements for two local companies during their Sept. 1 meeting.
The first was for Drake Extrusion, LLC, which announced an expansion earlier in the year.
“They announced that they would do a $6.85 million expansion and hire an additional 30 folks,” County Administrator Tim Hall said.
Hall added that the levels of investment generated both a Commonwealth Opportunity Fund (COF) incentive package and a Harvest Foundation (HOF) incentive package.
“Incentive money comes to the county and the IDA, and we are responsible for disbursing it once the companies hit their benchmarks,” Hall said. “We are also responsible for clawing it back if they don’t hit their benchmarks.”
The COF package for Drake Extrusion is worth $90,000, and the second performance agreement with the Harvest Foundation would add another $100,000 in return for promises of performance.
Of the total $6.85 million investment, approximately $6.1 million will be invested in machinery and tools, while approximately $750,000 will be invested in the expansion and up-fit of the building for the facility. The investment is expected to generate additional tax revenue and economic activity for the county constituting a valid purpose for the expenditure of public funds, according to COF performance agreement.
The performance date for the COF agreement is Dec. 31, 2024, but if the county deems the company is making reasonable efforts to reach the targets, the date can be extended up to 15 months.
According to the agreement with Harvest, once Drake Extrusion has completed $700,000 in renovations on its leased facility at 790 Industrial Park Drive in Ridgeway, and provides invoices to that effect, the county will disburse the $100,000 within 30 days. Overall, the company is required to locate or construct taxable assets in the county with an assessed value of at least $7.75 million.
In addition, the grant from Harvest requires that the company hire and retain, for at least 36 months, at least 20 new employees in the locality, with an average hourly wage of $17 per hour.
The third performance agreement was for Applied Felts/FerraTex Solutions.
“Applied Felts has been located over near the college for a long time,” Hall said. “They are based in the United Kingdom and they have purchased a company called FerraTex Solutions, and they are moving that company, plus adding to that company.”
Hall said the expansion will be at “the old Garland Smart building at the Patriot Centre across from Monogram. That building was most recently used for the trade show.”
The company will invest $1.95 million for the expansion and add 15 jobs, according to the agreement. While the expansion did not qualify for a grant from the Harvest Foundation, the incentive package will include COF funds of $65,000.
Of the $1.95 million total investment, Applied Felts will be required to spend approximately $1.75 million on machinery and tools. Another $200,000 will be spent on upgrades to the facility, according to the agreement.
The performance date is Dec. 31, 2024, with the county reserving the option to extend the agreement.
“Both of these companies are quality folks,” Hall said. “They’ve been here forever, and I have no doubt that they will do what they say they are going to do.”
