Nearly $3M redevelopment deal brings ‘Project Dolphin’ to Winnebago County industrial park

By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — Winnebago County Board members have OK’d an incentive package that could be worth nearly $3 million over 10 years to entice a new business to the county’s south side.

The company coming to town hasn’t been named yet, and its identity is protected under a non-disclosure agreement with developers that government officials have also adhered to. But Venture One Real Estate, the developer behind the project, has promised a roughly $30 million, 350,000 square-foot facility on a 21-acre site at the northwest corner of Baxter and Mulford roads.

For now, the county is referring to it only as “Project Dolphin.”

“It’s exciting that this area is gaining momentum and attracting new business to Winnebago County,” Chris Dornbush, director of development services for Winnebago County, said in a statement. “From the central location to the highway system and the ease of access on and off the interstate, to the large parcel space, water hook-ups and heavy road capacity limits, there are plenty of incentives to doing business in the area.”

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This will fill the final plot on the north side of the Rock 39 Industrial Park, which the county helped spur the creation of in 2011 in partnership with New Milford and Cherry Valley. The trio of government bodies created an Illinois Industrial Jobs Recovery Law tax increment finance district, which allows them to incentivize development by repaying portion of taxes back to companies for certain costs associated with construction.

In this case, the county estimates about $2.9 million could be paid to the company over the next decade, according to the redevelopment agreement.

The industrial park is also home to Berner Foods, FedEx, XPO Logistics and an Amazon distribution center. Amazon’s soon-to-open 141,000-square-foot facility is the most recent addition to the area.

“In just the past two years, we’ve been able to bring in nearly $60 million in development for the (Interstate) 39 corridor,” County Board Chairman Joe Chiarelli said in a statement. “This agreement will allow the county to spur private investment, increase property values and pave the way for future economic development in the region, and in turn create a large number of jobs which will benefit Cherry Valley, New Milford and Winnebago County as a whole.”

Chiarelli said the Chicago Rockford International Airport, which is ranked in the top 15 in the country for cargo, has helped spur more interest in the industrial park.

“We’re seeing a lot more demand outside of the airport fence, which they’re doing a fantastic job inside the fence, but outside the fence of the airport you’re getting a lot of demand of these feeder type businesses,” he said.

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New deal, new jobs

This incentive package was unlike others offered in the industrial park. When the industrial TIF was created in 2011, it allowed up to 50% of the increment — the name given to property taxes generated beyond the value of land before construction — to be returned to developers.

This time, the company will get 75%. That was done because of the rising costs associated with construction, Chiarelli said. It’s also why the county moved with a sense of urgency to approve the deal.

“This one is moving quickly because the cost of goods are going up so fast, interest rates are going up, bond rates are going up,” he said in a phone interview. “We wanted to be able to say to the ultimate end user that we’ve reacted quickly because every day that goes by costs are rising.”

It’s unclear how many jobs will be created at the new business. However, the developer is building 200 parking spaces and allocating space for an additional 100 parking spots, “so you can equate that to how many jobs,” Chiarelli said.

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Why name it Project Dolphin?

You shouldn’t look to the code name for hints as to what company is coming to town.

Before it was revealed that Amazon was the latest addition to the industrial park, County Board members approved a deal for that development under the code name Project Sawgrass. That name, like Project Dolphin, was picked by the developer.

“Sawgrass was named after a golf course,” Chiarelli said. “It had no real relevance to anything other than the developer liked the name Sawgrass from the golf course.”

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Chiarelli said he couldn’t name the business coming here, but he said it was distribution and warehousing for a “high-value product” from a company sought after by many developers.

“They’re highly sought after end-users, (so) not to disrupt the due diligence process there’s non-disclosure agreements,” Chiarelli said.

The name should be revealed before ground is broken on construction. Under the terms of the redevelopment agreement, construction should start by Oct. 1. Completion is targeted for spring 2024.

This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on Twitter at @KevinMHaas.