Pueblo city officials address NDA for potential ‘manufacturing business’ developments
PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) - Residents gathered at Pueblo Community College on Wednesday to discuss "Project Falcon," a proposed international manufacturing facility south of town. The project, which involves $65 million in infrastructure upgrades and tax incentives, has raised public concern due to ongoing secrecy about the company's identity.
At the meeting, Pueblo City Councilman Ted Hernandez addressed questions, but noted a non-disclosure agreement prevented him from revealing key details such as the name of the company, what the product is, where their other locations are and how much they're spending on the project.
"When we get to tell people they're going to get a chuckle out of 'why did we have to keep this secret?' And it's only because they're a publicly traded company," says Hernandez.
If approved, the undisclosed consumer packaged goods firm would bring 293 jobs to Pueblo, generate a total payroll of $25–$30 million, and return nearly $20 million in sales, use tax, and permit fee revenue to the city within the first three years, according to Hernandez.
On Thursday, Mayor Heather Graham held a press conference in which she confirmed that the company will be a tissue manufacturing facility.
However, Mayor Heather Graham, who attended the meeting, stated she has not vetted the company.
"What I am going to tell you, Councilman Hernandez, is the mayor has never seen any of the financials or vetted this company, period. What PEDCO did previously is not something that the mayor's office has done. So that's a correction," says Mayor Graham.
Raising concerns from the public about increased water bills and financials.
"What's going to raise for us because I know this isn't just all great. I know our water bills probably going to go up," questioned a resident.
According to Hernandez, a contract has been negotiated with the Board of Water Works, which he said would prevent a rise in water bills, and approximately $20 million of the proposed infrastructure funding is allocated for improvements to Lime Road.
These improvements, councilors say, are intended to create more business opportunities in the future.
Public hearings regarding "Project Falcon" are scheduled for June 8 and June 22. Councilors hope to release the name of the company by the time these hearings occur.
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