(MANHATTAN, Kan. – April 18, 2022) — Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly announced today a development partnership with Scorpion Biological Services Inc. to support the anticipated construction of a new biomanufacturing facility to be built in Pottawatomie County, at the northeast corner of Excel Road and U.S. Highway 24.
The announcement was made this morning at a news conference featuring federal, state, local, and Kansas State University officials, including members of the City Commission and City administration. This development partnership negotiated an economic development package that includes incentives provided by the State of Kansas, Pottawatomie County, and the City of Manhattan.
“We are very excited to announce this major collaborative undertaking to build on our community’s investments to attract significant bioscience-related business to our region,” said City Manager Ron Fehr. “This tremendous project is expected to yield an incredible 500,000-square-foot facility and a $650 million investment in our community with more than 500 new, very well-paying full-time jobs.”
The City Commission will consider a non-binding resolution at its April 19 meeting that expresses the City’s support for the project and its intent to offer City economic development incentives to Scorpion. The proposed location will be considered for an island annexation into the City limits in the future.
The resolution (which can be viewed as part of the April 19 agenda packet at www.cityofmhk.com/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/8194) outlines the City’s proposed contribution to the economic development package, which includes:
- The issuance of $567 million in Industrial Revenue Bonds (IRBs), with sales tax exemptions, to fund the actual construction of the project;
- A 10-year, 100 percent property tax abatement plan; and
- An $8 million forgivable loan that will be tied to the realized capital investment and employee jobs, wages, and benefits to be created.
The proposed package of economic development incentives is made possible by the community’s support of several Economic Development Sales Tax initiatives and this project will stand out as one of the largest projects to date, exceeding the $5 million City package for the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF).
The City of Manhattan, the State of Kansas, K-State, Pottawatomie County and the Greater Manhattan Economic Partnership collaborated to develop this economic development package, and the City’s incentives will be conditioned upon the City Commission’s approval of several agreements and actions to occur over the next few months, as well as the approval of the state and county incentives.
Representatives of Scorpion plan to attend the City Commission meeting April 19 to discuss the project. Scorpion has indicated it plans to recruit graduates for much of its workforce from K-State and Manhattan Area Technical College, as well as veterans exiting the military from Fort Riley.
Full details related to the development of this project can be found through press releases from the State of Kansas and the Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce.
More information about the City can be found online at www.cityofmhk.com, or by following the City on Facebook @cityofmanhattan or Twitter @cityofmhk.
###