The city of Jackson has come up with a tax break opportunity that would bring jobs to the capitol city. The opportunity would be made available to Comcast Cable.
The cable company is in negotiation with the County Line Road Development in hopes of housing its company in the old Kmart store located at Beasley Road and I-55 they are currently in the process of refurbishing.
The CLRD intends to invest $6.8 million in the building that has been vacant for a number of years.
Comcast Cable spokeswoman Frances Smith said leasing this building will give opportunity to have all offices in one place.
“Because of the size of this building, we would be able to bring everyone together in one building,” said Smith. “We have several offices throughout the city and surrounding areas and this could be perfect.”
Smith however re-iterates that nothing is final.
“We have not made any final decisions,” said Smith. “We are still in negotiations with the County Line Road Development firm as possible tenants.
The deal that was approved on Tuesday will freeze city taxes for five years on improvements to the building. In addition to relocating Comcast’s already 189 employees in the current building, it would also create 50 additional jobs.
Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson, Jr., said he is extremely excited at this business venture.
“We’re very pleased that Comcast is going to be able to consolidate their operations in the metro area,” he said. “We’re always looking to bring more jobs to the city and this will definitely open the door to that.”
The city has also offered Comcast tax relief for an additional five years for complying with this provision, subject to council approval.
As far as when the deal will be finalized, Smith said she hopes it could come soon.
“It is our hope that everything could come to an agreement in the next couple of weeks,” she said. “But some things do take time.”
Once a deal is reached, Smith said, the developer will spend a number of months remodeling the structure and getting it to their liking prior to the company moving in, which is projected to be mid-2010.
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