The Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce was very pleased to participate in Monday's economic development announcement by Scorpion Biological Services. At a large Manhattan gathering organized by Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly and other state and local officials, Scorpion executives announced they intend to construct a 500,000+ square foot facility for biomanufacturing in the Manhattan region. The company expects to invest $576 million on the facility and another $82 million in equipment and is expected to employ over 500 people at an average salary of over $75,000.
The site of the facility is going to be at the northeast corner of U.S. 24 and Excel Road in Pottawatomie County. Part of the project requirements will be annexation into Manhattan.
The Manhattan City Commission will be considering a resolution at their regular meeting tonight that outlines Scorpion's commitment to the region and the proposed incentives from the community that would be part of the overall transaction. A copy of the resolution can be found here.
Some of the positive aspects of this project include:
• The projected investment and jobs by the company makes Monday's announcement the largest private sector announcement in the history of Manhattan. According to a recent article in the Manhattan Mercury, it was reported that the largest private investment in the history of Manhattan would be the new Art and Light Museum. Scorpion would ultimately be nearly 20 times larger. And, unlike the significant public investments made by Kansas State and Fort Riley, the Scorpion facility will ultimately be assessed and on the tax rolls.
• The average salary of workers at Scorpion will be 70 percent higher than the current average salary in Manhattan ($44,000).
• According to Impact DataSource, an economics firm in Austin, Texas, the project will generate 500 direct jobs and an additional 700 indirect jobs and bring over 1,000 new residents to the area. The total direct payroll is projected to be $750 million over 20 years. These will be new dollars into the Manhattan regional economy and should translate into over $43 million in new taxable purchases.
• According to Impact DataSource, the city should see net benefits of $118 million over the first 20 years of operations in the form of sales and property taxes as well as other fees and services after accounting for additional costs that accompany new residents and commercial development.
• The jobs created by Scorpion will be instrumental in keeping graduates and young professionals in the region, giving the community a boost in economic growth and prosperity.
• Manhattan was able to leverage the strengths of the community with an effective incentive proposal to win the project over a number of communities in a 25+ state search. The estimated economic payback of the city's proposed 10-year tax abatement and $8 million jobs grant is three (3) years. The funding for the jobs grant will come from the dedicated economic development sales tax approved by Manhattan voters and should not effect any other operations of the city.
These are only a few of the reasons why this project has the potential to change the economic landscape in Manhattan for decades. Please plan to attend tonight's meeting at 7 p.m. if you can. We have received positive feedback from commissioners but they always appreciate getting support from the business community. Additionally, Scorpion Chairman Jeff Wolf and other company representatives will be at the meeting to answer question
