A new business enterprise zone is being formed in Grundy County, with a seven-member commission appointed to oversee its activities.
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A new business enterprise zone is being formed in Grundy County, with a seven-member commission appointed to oversee its activities.
Trenton Community Developer Sean Burge said the current enterprise zone, which was located within the city of Trenton, is set to expire due to a sunset provision in Missouri State Statutes. A reformulated enterprise zone, called an Enhanced Enterprise Zone, is being put in place and allows for the extension of the zone into the county.
“Obviously, the bigger the zone, the more ability you have to offer incentives to companies,” Burge explained.
Burge explained that an enterprise zone is an area of land that a business can locate on and receive tax credits for investment and job creation. He said retail businesses and gaming organizations are prohibited from receiving the incentives, but for other types of businesses, the minimum requirement is that two jobs are created and $100,000 worth of investment is made.
A seven-member board is required to oversee the zone and must include a representative of the largest school district in the zone, which would obviously be the Trenton R-9 School District, and one representative from among the taxing entities in the project area. The other five members would be at-large positions. Members of the commission include Presiding Commissioner Kenny Roberts, Grundy County Assessor Don Stotts, Trenton City Administrator Kerry Sampson, Grundy County Treasurer Colleen Kidd, Trenton R-9 School Superintendent Craig Noah, Small Business Development Center Executive Director Steve Holt, who is also a member of the Trenton R-9 School Board, and Tom Witten, who is representing the community as an at-large member.
Burge said the commission is in the information-gathering stage right now, considering what areas are eligible according to state statutes. He noted that the commission has a lot of control over what level of incentives to offer to which companies and can determine if they want certain businesses to locate in specific areas of the county. The commission is also charged with determining what level of tax abatement to offer.