Waukee council votes to play fair
KENT DARR Jun 22, 2016 | 3:39 pm
<1 min read time
0 wordsAll Latest News, Economic Development, Real Estate and Development
Waukee city officials have asked to appear June 27 before the West Des Moines City Council to seek support for plans by Holmes Murphy & Associates to leave West Des Moines and build a corporate campus in Waukee’s Kettlestone development area.
Under a regional fair play agreement that the Waukee City Council adopted without comment at its meeting Monday, the city cannot offer financial incentives for the move until Holmes Murphy provides West Des Moines with a letter saying it has made an “irrevocable” decision to relocate.
That letter has been delivered to West Des Moines city officials, Mayor Steve Gaer said.
West Des Moines’ support for Holmes Murphy’s move to land owned by Knapp Properties Inc. also is needed for the insurer to obtain state of Iowa economic development incentives.
If the West Des Moines City Council is satisfied that Waukee has not offered financial incentives that are beyond the norm in Greater Des Moines, then it probably will support the move.
Gaer noted that Kum & Go LC’s decision to move its headquarters to Des Moines was approved by the council, and Des Moines supported Merchants Bonding Co.’s move to West Des Moines.
Waukee was not part of the fair play agreement when it was adopted in 2000 by Greater Des Moines communities concerned that companies would chase lucrative incentive packages to move from one city to another.
With the 1,700-acre Kettlestone development area offering once-in-a-lifetime growth potential for Waukee, the city has taken steps to make certain it is prepared for the growth, including working with its neighbors.
“Waukee is in a unique position,” Gaer said.
The Waukee City Council, with one member voting by telephone in order to have a quorum, wasted little time Monday in adopting the fair play agreement.
The Council voted without discussion to adopt the agreement, which essentially says the member communities will not offer financial incentives — primarily tax increment financing and property tax rebates — to lure a business from another community. The item was bundled with 26 noncontroversial items that were approved in one vote.
Also in that bundle was an expansion of the city’s financial incentives for economic development. Waukee is gearing up for projects it expects to fill the 1,700-acre Kettlestone development area. The vote on what is called the “fair play” agreement was triggered after the city of West Des Moines expressed its displeasure with plans by Holmes Murphy & Associates to move to Waukee.
FROM THE RECORD ARCHIVES:
W.D.M. officials say Holmes Murphy is headed to Waukee, where new incentives being considered
June 20, 2016 – Holmes Murphy & Associates has decided to move its operations to Waukee, according to city officials in West Des Moines, where the company currently is headquartered. Read the article >>>
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