County agrees issue bonds to advance developments

By Deborah Buckhalter

Published: July 24, 2008

Jackson County Commissioners have agreed to be the conduit through which industrial revenue bonds can be issued to help finance two new major developments in the county.
The board approved resolutions Tuesday taking on that role.
Ice River Springs, of Canada, plans to build a water bottling plant in the Marianna Industrial Park and another company wants to build an ethanol production plant near Campbellton.
The name of the second company, based in Delaware, has not yet been disclosed, and is being referred to by code name “Destination Bio.”
Having the county serve as the bond-issuing agency for both projects gives tax exempt status to the sale of the bonds to investors.
The developers then expect investors to be willing to take a lower interest rate in repayment because of the profits they’ll retain under the tax exempt status of the bond sales.
Acting as the issuing party will not put the county at risk, cost it any money, or obligate it in any other way, according to Bill Stanton, who brought the matter for consideration as the director of Jackson County Development Council.
The $40 million worth of bonds expected to be issued on the Destination Bio project will be used to fund a solid waste disposal facility that is part of the company’s ethanol production operation.
The disposal facility is essentially made up of machines which will have air purifiers and materials to keep “distiller’s grain” from leeching into the groundwater as the wet grain is dried out and ultimately shipped away, Stanton said.
The grain is residue that will be extracted as it’s processed for use in the production of ethanol.
The operation is expected to bring 55 full-time jobs to the county.
The $10 million bonds expected to be issued on behalf of Ice River Springs will be used to finance acquisition of property, construction costs, building improvements, and equipment for a walter-filtering purification and bottling facility.
The project includes the construction of a high-speed bottling line. 
The plant will be located at 3529 Russell Road, the site of the old Russell Apparel operation there.