Montgomery Village President and Other Officials Want to Meet With Caterpillar

Update: This article was updated on Jan. 13, 2017 at 4:56 p.m. CST to reflect additional information from a Caterpillar spokeswoman.

Montgomery Village President Matt Brolley has reached out to other elected officials to address the possible closure of the manufacturing plant in the local Caterpillar facility, according to Kendall County Now.

The heavy equipment company announced last week that it may shift the production line for large- and medium- wheel loaders to other U.S. locations.

Brolley said he spoke with Kendall County Board Chairman Scott Gryder, interim Aurora Mayor Bob O'Conner, Oswego Village President Gail Johnson and U.S. Rep. Bill Foster about the possible closure. Brolley said the officials agreed to pursue a meeting with Caterpillar, and several contacted the company.

"We've reached out to them. [But] we have not solidified anything yet," Brolley told Kendall County Now.

Denise Johnson, Resource Industries group president for Caterpillar, indicated the company was willing to work with local officials.

“Should we move forward with the decision to relocate production, we will support the local leaders to mitigate the impact on our employees, their families and the community,” Johnson said in press release last week. “We value and respect the significant contributions all employees in Aurora have made in ensuring Caterpillar maintains its unparalleled record of quality and service to our customers and dealer network.”

Caterpillar Spokeswoman Jamie Fox said in a phone interview on Friday that the company reached out to federal and state representatives and some local officials on the day of the announcement last week. She also said Caterpillar expects to make a final decision in late June or early July.

The facility not only provides jobs, but also tax revenue. The company paid just over $1.2 million in property taxes last year, with nearly $850,000 going to School District 308, which is based in Oswego.

According budget documents on their website, District 308 expects to receive just over $191 million in revenue for fiscal year 2017. Just over half of that is expected to come from local taxes. If tax rates remained the same, the direct income from Caterpillar's property taxes would be about half of one percent of the district's estimated revenue.

The impact of moving the production line on property taxes is not clear yet. Caterpillar doesn't plan on closing the entire facility. They would keep about 1,200 sales and maintenance staff.

Village President Brolley told Kendall County Now that the closure would have a ripple effect, impacting suppliers and other local businesses that work with Caterpillar.

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