The paper company “Billerud” asked for a renaissance zone designation worth a little under 30-million-dollars to help expand its Escanaba Mill.
Michigan Economic Development Corporation C-E-O Quentin Messer says the move will help the plant stay competitive, saving over 12-hundred jobs. But officials are uncertain about job creation numbers.
“The important thing to think about is whenever you are able to retain a job, you are better positioned for future growth and the possibility for future jobs. And so, I think retaining jobs are a necessary precondition.”
The project was the subject of rumors surrounding a large-scale spending deal that didn’t get done before state lawmakers went home last week.