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Hopes of luring a high-tech company with up to 30 employees (15 would be hired locally) to Nevada County may hinge on a $1.2 million incentive package county officials are preparing.
“We don't plan on failing in our attempt to move, but it would be a setback,” if the county funding doesn't come through, said Tom Frantz, Huntington Mechanical Laboratories vice president.
Nevada County government officials would get the money from a state community development grant and “pass it through,” in the form of a loan to Huntington, according to Kyle Thompson of the county planning department.
Huntington, established in 1969 and located in Mountain View, Calif., would pay the loan back into a revolving fund that would then be used to finance other local business retention and recruitment efforts, Thompson said.
The deal involves no general fund dollars that are typically used for day-to-day county operations.
The Board of Supervisors will host a public hearing Tuesday as part of an application process for the state funding.
“We need funding,” for the move and the county is one of the better sources, Frantz said. “It's (the county loan) a very big cog in the wheel,” Frantz added.
County documents indicate Huntington has seen sales slow in recent years due to broadening international competition. The company has also gone through a leadership transition, a result of retirements and rebuilding efforts, according to Frantz.
Huntington would like to move to the current site of a warehouse being used by Furniture by Thurston in the Loma Rica Business Park, according to county documents.
The move would allow the firm to, “Choose from a broadly skilled labor force, remain close to its Bay Area key suppliers and key customers while reducing costs to a satisfactory level,” according to a document prepared for the board by Planning Director Jory Stewart.
The loan would cover relocation costs and provide some operating capital.
Huntington is interested in Nevada County because Economic Resource Council Executive Director Gil Mathew worked hard to “sell” the area, Frantz said.
The board meets at 9 a.m. Tuesday at the Rood Center, 950 Maidu Ave., in Nevada City.
To contact Senior Staff Writer Dave Moller, e-mail dmoller@theunion.com or call 477-4237.
“We don't plan on failing in our attempt to move, but it would be a setback,” if the county funding doesn't come through, said Tom Frantz, Huntington Mechanical Laboratories vice president.
Nevada County government officials would get the money from a state community development grant and “pass it through,” in the form of a loan to Huntington, according to Kyle Thompson of the county planning department.
Huntington, established in 1969 and located in Mountain View, Calif., would pay the loan back into a revolving fund that would then be used to finance other local business retention and recruitment efforts, Thompson said.
The deal involves no general fund dollars that are typically used for day-to-day county operations.
The Board of Supervisors will host a public hearing Tuesday as part of an application process for the state funding.
“We need funding,” for the move and the county is one of the better sources, Frantz said. “It's (the county loan) a very big cog in the wheel,” Frantz added.
County documents indicate Huntington has seen sales slow in recent years due to broadening international competition. The company has also gone through a leadership transition, a result of retirements and rebuilding efforts, according to Frantz.
Huntington would like to move to the current site of a warehouse being used by Furniture by Thurston in the Loma Rica Business Park, according to county documents.
The move would allow the firm to, “Choose from a broadly skilled labor force, remain close to its Bay Area key suppliers and key customers while reducing costs to a satisfactory level,” according to a document prepared for the board by Planning Director Jory Stewart.
The loan would cover relocation costs and provide some operating capital.
Huntington is interested in Nevada County because Economic Resource Council Executive Director Gil Mathew worked hard to “sell” the area, Frantz said.
The board meets at 9 a.m. Tuesday at the Rood Center, 950 Maidu Ave., in Nevada City.
To contact Senior Staff Writer Dave Moller, e-mail dmoller@theunion.com or call 477-4237.
