A tax abatement worth a total of around $10.4 million, which was granted by Monroe County’s council on Tuesday night, has cleared the way for Simtra BioPharma Solutions (formerly Baxter Pharmaceutical) to build a 140,000-square-foot manufacturing facility at its Curry Pike facility just outside Bloomington’s western city limits.
According to Simtra, the investment means a $145 million investment in capital equipment, and another $80,000 in real property investment. The company says that the expansion will create 130 new jobs with an average salary plus benefits worth $73,379 a year.
Simtra’s paperwork indicates 1,039 current employees, so adding 130 would bring the total to around 1,169.
The company expects to have completed the project in about two and a half years, by September 2026.
Under the 10-year abatement schedule, 100 percent of the $1.185 million in real property taxes would be abated in the first year, along with 100 percent of the estimated $859,154 in personal property taxes.
Personal property means movable items like vehicles, manufacturing equipment, machinery, and furniture.
Under the abatement schedule, the portion of the taxes in each category to be abated decreases incrementally each year, until the full tax burden would be paid in the 11th year.
Over the life of the abatement, Simtra will pay an estimated $3.02 million in personal property taxes, with about $4.5 million of its personal property tax bill saved through the abatement.
Over the life of the abatement, Simtra will pay an estimated $5.98 million in real property taxes, with about $5.87 million of its real property tax bill saved through the abatement.
Presenting the proposal for Simtra was Patrick Adams, Bloomington’s plant manager. Adams noted that the additional three manufacturing lines would basically double the production capacity of the company.
Speaking in support of the proposal from the public were Jen Pearl, who is president of the Bloomington Economic Development Corporation, and Christopher Emge, who is director of advocacy for the Greater Bloomington Chamber of Commerce.
The abatement was not controversial for county councilors.
Councilor Geoff McKim said that when Warburg Pincus announced the acquisition of Baxter Pharmaceutical last year, there were some concern locally that the intent might be just to sell off the assets of the company.
But McKim said, “This enormous investment really strongly puts those concerns to rest. And so I think we’re all really excited to hear this.”
Councilor Peter Iversen said, “This just really strengthens this corridor that we have.” He added, “Innovation is just happening all around Monroe County, and I just couldn’t be more excited about this project.”
Councilor Marty Hawk picked up on the bit of data in the background materials that indicated about 53 percent of current Simtra employees live in Monroe County, calling the expansion an “opportunity for the people who live here.”
Hawk added, “It’s just an opportunity for our people to have a job, that they can be proud to be working with your team, and making enough money to actually survive here in this county—because it’s pretty expensive to live here.”
Council president Trent Deckard pointed to the couple of dozen employees of Simtra who had shown up in person to attend the meeting, saying, “I love seeing all those faces back there. That tells me that not only are you wanting to be in the community, you’re in the community—you are here.”
Deckard also liked the fact that the company tracks its ESG (environmental, social and governance) statistics, which is something that Councilor Kate Wiltz had drawn out in her questions.
this is an example of the sort of facility where the workers could potentially use a 3rd street bus rapid transit line. it is a very achievable goal to outperform the transportation experience of hundreds of people leaving a factory at shift-change in single-occupancy cars.
of course, in order for that to work, there would have to be housing somewhere for the bus to somehow connect to. sigh.