The window maker Andersen will break ground on a new manufacturing plant Friday. It’s about 546,000 square feet.
Andersen’s new plant will employ over 400 permanent workers.
Harry Paxton, project manager in the Goodyear Economic Development Department, said the majority of the workers will earn about 125 percent above the state median wage. “So they’re in the range of the mid-40s,” he said. Other workers would make less.
The City of Goodyear is providing $1,944 for some positions, provided they meet certain pay and benefit requirements. The city’s maximum grant to the company is $875,000. The company can use the incentive money in the current phase of the plant’s life, or for a potential second plant of similar size. The city will also waiver or reimburse large percentages of review and permit fees.
At the state level, a spokesperson for the Arizona Commerce Authority wrote in an email that the Qualified Facility Tax Credit awards up to $20,000 in refundable income tax credits “per qualifying net new job to eligible manufacturing companies that invest in one or more qualifying facilities.” Under that program, Andersen has applied for and been pre-approved for $9 million in tax credits for its promise to create 415 jobs over five years. The company has to meet certain milestones in order to get the credit.
Paxton said the plant should start operations in 2020.
“It will be, in the first phase, one of the largest manufacturers in our community,” Paxton said. If the company decides to build the second plant, Paxton thinks it would be one of the largest manufacturing operations in the West Valley.
"The community has certainly targeted manufacturing companies, advanced manufacturing companies that provide a significant number of jobs."
