Officials Look For Other Companies To Move Near Foxconn

MT. PLEASANT- STURTEVANT, WI — Local officials, consultants and others involved in the Racine Foxconn development gave the first public update on the state of the project since 2019 during a meeting Tuesday, which can be streamed through WISN12 News.

While actual investment from Foxconn in Racine has brought fewer than the thousands of jobs that were initially claimed possible by the company, officials and others involved in the project said in the update meeting they have continued to look toward other companies for more development at the improved sites near Foxconn's campus.

Foxconn was invited to attend the meeting, but reports say representatives were not in attendance.

Parts of the developments Foxconn has made so far at the site are used for servers, Claude Lois, the Village of Mount Pleasant's contracted "TID 5 project director," said in Tuesday's meeting.

"Today, actually because of all the work we did, we're actually sitting pretty good," Lois said in the meeting, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel had reported.

"I think we did the right thing moving forward," Lois said during the meeting.

The valuation of the site has not yet matched what the agreement is set for, though.

The County indicates Foxconn has made about 36 percent of the value required by Jan. 1, 2023. If the tax incremental district is not valued at $1.4 billion by then, Foxconn would have to pay Mount Pleasant additional property taxes equal to what would have been created by the $1.4 billion value.

For some, the project update meeting presented few answers.

Kelly Gallaher, who leads a watchdog community group and Facebook page, A Better Mt. Pleasant, called the meeting a "sad review" of the events over the years.

"There was nothing new in this meeting," Gallaher told Patch. "And residents did not give up generational family farms, and their homes for spec buildings and the hope of future developments."

Gallaher wondered what would happen if Foxconn was not able to make payments down the line that were agreed upon with TID 5.

The Village of Mount Pleasant reports the equalized value of the TID 5 has reached about $520 million, while the agreement expects the valuation to eventually be brought up to $1.4 billion by 2023, according to the "Foxconn Guaranty" the county lists on its website.

During the presentation, Lois pointed out the numerous infrastructure projects that have come, such as various highway expansions including the widening of highways, or various water and sewer line improvements.

Jim Paetsch, the executive director and senior vice president for Milwaukee 7 — an economic development platform that he says has been involved in various development projects including Foxconn and the recently pitched Intel site — pointed out the benefits of the ready-to-go site in the streamed meeting.

"Due to the subsequent land acquisition and infrastructure investments that were made by the village and the county," Paetsch said in the meeting, "...the area surrounding the Foxconn campus is today a highly attractive site and really attractive to a company like Intel," The Milwaukee Business Journal had reported.

Reports have shown Intel was considering Mt. Pleasant for the site of a multi-billion-dollar semiconductor plant, but the company announced plans for a plant in Ohio in January for that project.

"The same things that Intel saw in Mount Pleasant in this location is going to be attractive to other users," Paetsch said.

"The really good news for Mount Pleasant and Racine county is we have a really good site," Paetsch added.

Kim Mahoney, who has a home on the Foxconn site, refused to leave when the village began to clear the land for development, according to a TMJ4 news report.

Mahoney told the television outlet "the place looks blighted. We have underutilized buildings..."

FURTHER READING:

Foxconn: 5 Things To Know About Wisconsin's Newest Company

Foxconn Says It Has Reached Construction Milestone

iPhone Builder Foxconn Looking for 1,000 Acres in Racine County

iPhone Builder Foxconn Could Bring 50,000 Jobs to Racine, or Kenosha