Victoria County is preparing to offer a tax break to Invista, the chemical manufacturing giant that is expanding its footprint in Victoria.
Commissioners are scheduled Monday to formally approve a tax abatement with the company, which is investing $200 million to upgrade its plant. The investment will create construction jobs as well as full-time positions.
“We’re very excited to see an investment of this amount,” County Judge Ben Zeller said. “Given that this is nearly a 70-year-old plant and they still deem it a good investment, we’re excited to see that.”
As part of the agreement, Invista has committed to creating at least 300 temporary construction jobs at the peak of the project’s construction phase. Once completed, the improved unit will provide “the equivalent of 65 local, full-time employment positions,” according to a copy of the agreement.
The tax abatement agreement, which extends for 10 years, promises a 50 percent abatement on the property taxes the company will pay for its adiponitrile unit, the fixture getting the $200 million upgrade.
Invista is owned by Koch Industries, the Wichita, Kans.-based corporation that acquired the company from DuPont.
Commissioners have a packed agenda Monday, which will be the body’s last meeting in 2018. Elected officials will hear a report from public health researchers who have been studying health conditions in Bloomington and Placedo, two unincorporated communities located in the county. The researchers will make recommendations for how the county can better support both communities and improve the well-being of residents there.
The county will also formally receive a report from the Texas Commission on Jail Standards, the body charged with reviewing local jails, and make sure the county jail meets health and safety standards.
The court will also consider a lease agreement with U.S. Rep. Michael Cloud, who plans to move his district offices from their current location on North Navarro Street to a county-owned building in downtown Victoria.
Officials will also discuss the county’s trapper program, among other agenda items.
