National company could bring jobs to local branch

 In 2009, a local piping plant became a statistic as it was left with no choice, in the face of a crumbling economy, but to lay off more than 50 percent of its work force.

Today, Prime Conduit of High Springs is looking at a chance to grow again. The company, Prime Conduit, Inc., is based in Cleveland, Ohio. It manufactures various types of industrial piping, and since the slumping market created a virtual freeze on new construction, its business has suffered.

However, the company is looking to market a new variety of piping product better suited to current demand, using new equipment it developed.

Now the company has to decide which of its manufacturing locations is going to house the new technology, which could revive Prime Conduit’s business in the selected area and potentially provide some relief to the local economy; especially the job market.

It could go to California, Pennsylvania or Oklahoma. Or, it could come to High Springs.

The Council for Economic Outreach at the Gainesville Chamber of Commerce, in its efforts to help facilitate economic growth and prosperity throughout the area, has proposed that the City of High Springs and Alachua County offer Prime Conduit a Qualified Targeted Tax Industry Refund Program, or, QTI for short.

It’s a special tax refund plan designed to encourage the start of new business and to support the expansion of already-existing ones, such as this.

During a May 27 City Commission meeting, Brent Christensen, the president and chief executive officer of the Gainesville Chamber of Commerce and the Council for Economic Outreach, explained that in order to qualify for the QTI, Prime Conduit would have to create a minimum of 20 new jobs, and the company would receive a $60,000 tax refund.

Eighty percent of the refund would be funded by the state, and the other 20 percent comes from the local government; typically 10 percent from the city and 10 percent from the county.

This means that the city of High Springs would have to commit to paying a total of $6,000 over the course of four years.

During the meeting, Commissioner Larry Travis made a motion to officially state that the city would be willing to commit that money. There was a unanimous approval.

Travis said “We’ve been talking about economic development now for a while, and this is the first time where we can really put our money where our mouth is.”

The proposal will now be presented to the Alachua County Commission for approval on June 8.

David Ramsey, of the Council for Economic Outreach, explained that the QTI is being used to send a signal to Prime Conduit that the community is behind their project. And signals are important, he said.

But whether the company is or isn’t guaranteed a tax refund is not what will make or break this deal. There is another, much more heavily weighted factor being taken into consideration.

There is a concern that a railway running through High Springs, which serves as Prime Conduit’s primary shipping method, could be shut down and/or disassembled in the near future, because it is in need of repairs and also because it does not get enough traffic right now to make it worth its upkeep, Ramsey explained.

He stressed that nothing has been officially decided in regard to the rail, and the council is pursuing the issue to the best of its ability.

“We’re looking under every rock to crack this nut.”

He did say, however, that Prime Conduit made it clear that ultimately, they will commit to High Springs based on the verdict of the rail and that verdict alone.

A decision, Ramsey said, will be reached within the next two months.

Michael Ellis, the plant manager at Prime Conduit in High Springs, said at the commission meeting that the company has been part of the local community for 51 years, and the message from his corporate leadership is that they want to grow.

Ramsey said the QTI is the icing on the cake for the company to stay and grow in High Springs. The problem is, with the issue of the rail up in the air, the cake hasn’t yet been made.