Pueblo faces challenges attracting companies
When you shop in Pueblo, you’re paying a special tax used to bring jobs to the Steel City. The city has nearly $30 million set aside to lure companies with incentives.
Pueblo voters will decide in November whether to renew the city’s half-cent sales tax, which is earmarked for economic development.
“We are a great town for people to locate their companies in,” said Pueblo City Councilman Chris Nicoll.
But the head of the Pueblo Economic Development Corporation (PEDCO) said bringing companies to Pueblo has become more difficult.
“Our ability to attract companies with half-cent sales tax has probably gone down a little bit, and that’s simply a reflection on the amount of money that other states are able to offer companies,” said Jack Rink, president and CEO of PEDCO.
Nicoll said the city has its share of features to brag about. It’s home to the most visited state park in Colorado, a vibrant riverwalk and mild winters. But Nicoll said there are a number of things getting in the way of attracting more companies to Pueblo with the half-cent sales tax.
“I think it’s a combination of factors,” Nicoll said. “I don’t think you can put your finger on any one thing.”
Some prospective businesses are turned off by the blighted conditions in the community and the crime rate, Nicoll said. He also points to Pueblo City Schools, District 60, which is at risk of losing accreditation and being taken over by the state.
Puebloans have been taxing themselves since the mid 1980s to bring jobs to the community. KRDO NewsChannel 13 wanted to know how the money has been spent in recent years.
Since 2011, PEDCO has helped bring seven companies to Pueblo and expanded five existing businesses — committing a total of 541 new jobs to the community, about 10 jobs a month.
PEDCO’s biggest success story in recent years, when considering new jobs added, is Rocla Concrete Tie. The company employs about 260 people, with starting wages at about $12 an hour.
Located at the southside industrial park, employees are manufacturing concrete cross ties used to hold rails in place.
“We needed to be in this part of the country to service the Class I railroads,” said Eliseo Bandala, executive vice president of Rocla.
Rocla executives heard about the half-cent sales tax and contacted PEDCO in 2012. The city offered Rocla more than $2 million to relocate.
“The incentive package was a good package. It did weigh in on the decision making on our part and it made things easier for us,” Bandala said. “PEDCO made a difference.”
But Rocla is the only company PEDCO has brought to Pueblo in the last four years that’s hired more than 100 people. Still, Nicoll said he wants voters to renew the half-cent sales tax this year.
“It may not be the big whale that we’re gonna reel in, but maybe we get some smaller fishes and we build that job base one job at a time,” Nicoll.
Supporters of the tax, including Rink, said the city would be worse off without it.
The tax generates about $7 million a year. If voters renew the tax, it would last for another five years.
