2016 Wells expansion projects
Greater Fort Wayne Business Weekly
April 12
A 10-year tax abatement on $1.5 million in new equipment for Almco Steel was approved by the Bluffton Common Council. The company, at 59 N. Oak Street Extended in Bluffton, is in the process of installing two linear transfer units. One of the units, valued at more than $1 million, will press and move parts through it; the other, at a cost of $494,442, will only press. The application said the company has 101 employees with a payroll of $3.2 million. No new jobs will be added.
May 9
Ossian Town Council members approved a 10-year tax abatement request for Roembke Manufacturing and Design for $1.975 million for various upgrades. The abatement is expected to help Roembke retain 47 current jobs and add five new jobs with a total of $200,000 in salaries.
The council also approved a 10-year abatement for Peña’s Mechanical Contractors Inc. for a $64,472 single grinder top running bridge crane. The addition of the crane will add two jobs to the 38 currently employed at Peña’s.
May 10
ADM Animal Nutrition, 1800 W. Western Ave., received a 10-year tax abatement on a new truck scale and weighing system. The new equipment, which has an estimated cost of $221,000, replaces equipment used since 1978.
June 2
Plans, from the George Swinford Revocable Trust, call for construction of an office/warehouse building and 11 parking spaces at 350 E. State St., near the Kroger grocery store. Plans call for construction to come in phases, though work on the area could begin in the next two weeks. Initial construction will include a building, loading dock, earth work, a turnaround area for trucks and a detention basin for stormwater.
July 19
Pretzels Inc., 123 Harvest Road, is planning $7 million in improvements to its facility – upgrades on five lines plus backup equipment, plus repairs and an upgrade to its building. Improvements on the various production lines, plus server upgrades and warehouse and distribution equipment totaling nearly $4.9 million. Real estate improvements, at $2.1 million, include roof repairs and new HVAC and air maintenance systems. This project will also allow Pretzels Inc. to maintain our existing local workforce, currently in excess of 330 highly valued employees.
July 25
Ossian based Rethceif Packaging plans to nearly double the size of its current operation to accommodate new fabrication equipment. Rethceif Packaging will invest nearly $850,000 for a 18,125-square-foot expansion to its current building in the Ossian Industrial Park in Ossian. The current building is approximately 20,500 square feet. Rethceif Packaging, which currently has 23 employees, will add seven new jobs as a result of the expansion.
