Vigo County commissioners vote for economic recovery zone

arthur.foulkes@tribstar.com

TERRE HAUTE - The Vigo County Board of Commissioners voted Tuesday to take an important step in helping Clabber Girl Corp. and Thompson Thrift build a new food products distribution center on Terre Haute's east side.

The 3-0 vote sets the stage for the commissioners to establish Vigo County as an "economic recovery zone" at their Oct. 20 meeting, said Michael Wright, Vigo County attorney. Once the county is an "economic recovery zone," it can begin to distribute more than $8 million in tax free bonds for private development, he said.

"This is the first step," said Paul Thrift of Thompson Thrift, which is developing the distribution center for Clabber Girl, a Terre Haute-based food products manufacturer. Clabber Girl and Thompson Thrift are seeking about $5 million of the $8.6 million of the county's Recovery Zone Facility Bonds.

The tax-free bonds create no financial obligation for the city, county, state or federal governments, Thrift said. Rather, they simply allow banks to collect interest on the loans tax-free. This allows banks to make loans to private borrowers at a reduced rate, spurring private investment, he said.

"That's what the whole stimulus package is intended for," Thrift said.

If Clabber Girl and Thompson Thrift are successful in receiving the bonds for the project, the county will still have about $4 million in the tax-free bonds to distribute, county officials said. "There would be money available for other projects," said Commissioner Judy Anderson, D-2nd. "Great."

Thompson Thrift hopes to begin construction of the new distribution facility before the end of the year, Thrift said. The project could be completed by early summer 2010.

The planned 153,600-square-foot distribution facility will be on about 22 acres of currently agricultural land on the north side of Margaret Avenue near Interstate 70 and Indiana 46. The Terre Haute City Council is expected to vote on a request to rezone the property Thursday evening in City Hall.