by: Nicole Barrios / Austin American Statesman
An economic development agreement between the city of Round Rock and a mechanical company is expected to bring at least 365 jobs to the city.
Airco Mechanical, Inc., a commercial and residential heating, ventilation, and air conditioning service provider, is set to relocate its Central Texas headquarters to Round Rock.
Per the economic agreement, the company must lease and improve a building in the city to be a commercial office building and fabrication shop and employ at least 365 people in its first year of business in Round Rock.
The agreement anticipates that the annual average salary of an employee will be approximately $40,000.
The number of jobs the company’s move will bring to Round Rock will be closer to about 480 jobs in five years, said Michaela Dollar, Round Rock Chamber director of business attraction.
Round Rock City Council members approved the economic incentives agreement during a regular meeting on Dec. 17. The city will make an initial economic incentive payment to Airco Mechanical in the amount of $190,000, according to the agreement.
The company will also receive a 50-percent sales tax rebate on 1 cent of the general sales tax that they generate, said Ben White, Round Rock Chamber vice president of economic development.
Per the agreement, the sales tax rebate will continue for seven years or until Airco Mechanical receives $201,000.
“The more they sell the more they will get back,” White said. “What we call that is a performance-based incentive. If they perform well, man, they’re going to be great. If they don’t do well, their incentive will be (less). There’s no risk to the city on that type of incentive.”
The chamber will also provide a $30,000 economic development grant on top of the city’s incentives, Dollar said.
“The key to this project is that we’re filling a building that just sat empty for several years,” White said.
The new headquarters is an approximately 47,000-squre-foot building located at 1000 south Interstate 35. The company has invested over $9 million in the building already, Dollar said.
“This is an exciting project for us too,” Mayor Alan McGraw said. “To be able to put such a great company in that building in Round Rock is a beautiful thing for us, so thank you guys.”
Airco Mechanical, founded in Austin in 1984, is owned by Direct Energy, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of UK-based Centrica, PLC.
“The new location is visible from the interstate, gives us easy access to toll roads and room to grow in the future,” Chip Chambliss, general manager at Airco Mechanical and a longtime Round Rock resident, said in a news release. “We are happy to be part of the Round Rock business community and look forward to continuing to provide exceptional service to our Central Texas customers.”
White said the agreement was nine months in the making. This is the eighth economic development agreement for the chamber this year.
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