Fairfield City Council unanimously approved a tax incentive agreement Tuesday night for a massive new industrial development planned at the Jacquemin Farm property near Seward and Tylersville roads. The agreement allows the city to enter into a Community Reinvestment Area agreement and a school compensation agreement with Missouri-based NorthPoint Development for the proposed Butler County Trade Center project. According to city documents, NorthPoint plans to acquire about 140 acres at 8105 Seward Road and 3603 Tylersville Road and develop five speculative industrial buildings totaling nearly 1.29 million square feet. The development is targeted toward e-commerce, distribution, and manufacturing companies. The project’s estimated construction cost exceeds $130 million, and developers estimate the site could eventually support about 520 jobs with more than $22 million in annual payroll. Under the approved CRA agreement, NorthPoint would receive a 10-year, 75% property tax abatement on the assessed value of the new buildings. City officials said the developer requested incentives to help offset higher development costs tied to floodplain challenges and needed roadway and utility improvements. The agreement also includes provisions requiring NorthPoint to make payments to the city if tenants in the speculative buildings fail to generate agreed-upon income tax revenue targets. In addition, the developer agreed to provide annual compensation payments to Fairfield City Schools and Butler Tech. Council suspended the normal three-reading requirement and adopted the ordinance as an emergency measure to keep the project on schedule.

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(Image Courtesy: City of Fairfield)