On Tuesday, the Amarillo City Council unanimously approved Amarillo Economic Development Corporation (AEDC) measures to create location incentives agreements and tax abatements for Austin Hose LLC and Albers Aerospace.

Kevin Carter, president of the AEDC, spoke about the economic incentives during the city council meeting, as well as the economic impact these employers will have on the community.

Austin Hose LLC, which has a location at 4023 SW Ave. in Amarillo, is looking to build a 100,000-square-foot hydraulic hose manufacturing facility on 20.7 acres at South Georgia Street and East Farmers Avenue. The $10 million facility plans to open with 20 new employees in its first phase of development. The city is incentivizing them $10,000 for each job created up to $300,000 for the expected 30 new jobs that it will create. The total sum of the money is to be paid out over five years. The land for this project, valued at $724,000, will also be conveyed to Austin Hose LLC to expand their business and create jobs. The AEDC Board approved the agreement on July 25 on a 4-0 vote.

Also passed by the city council in relation to Austin Hose LLC was a 60% tax abatement over the next six years on the $10 million estimated cost facility.

To lure another lucrative company to the Amarillo area, the AEDC incentivized veteran-owned Albers Aerospace, a company specializing in aerospace manufacturing and solutions in unmanned flight systems, to consider the Amarillo area for its $50 million facility, which is expected to have 400 new employees with an average salary of $100,000.

With the agreement, the city of Amarillo will give Albers Aerospace 30 acres of land valued at $1.8 million, as well as build two hangars with runway access that will be leased from the AEDC. Partial lease forgiveness could be given if certain cost and spending goals are met by the company.

“We are super excited about Albers considering Amarillo,” Carter said. "They are going to create 400 high-paying new jobs in the region. They are going to create a center for excellence which will partner with West Texas A&M and Texas Tech and their engineering departments to create an aerospace and aviation engineering platform to feed into the aerospace platform that Albers Aerospace has created.”

Additionally, the AEDC will provide $8 million for the creation of these local jobs, with half to be paid within 30 days of the company making Amarillo its choice of location. The other $4 million will be paid after a year of the agreement being honored.

Carter said that there is interest from other cities to bring Albers Aerospace to their area but felt confident that the incentives the city of Amarillo are offering make them a strong contender to bring its facility to the region. He said that incentives would be brought before the Potter County Commissioners' Court at its next meeting on Monday, Aug. 8, for consideration.

“We really have a real opportunity to grow our city with more technical people," Carter added. "This is a great way to create an industry cluster in aerospace in the region. The products and technology that they have are very innovative, and people will move to work here to be a part of that.”

Also receiving a tax abatement agreement in this incentive agreement, Albers Aerospace will receive a 100% tax abatement over 10 years on its $50 million facility.

Asked about the economic impact on the region, Carter said that Austin Hose will be about $60 million over 20 years as a small business, and that Albers, with its 400 new employees, should exceed over $1.5 billion over the same time frame.

“These incentives are a win-win for the city and these organizations to bring more jobs into the community,” Carter added.