The Northwest Indiana Regional Development Authority (RDA) has pledged $1.4 million from its Deal Closing Fund as part of a package of local, regional and state incentives that secured a $260 million investment by Pratt Industries, Inc., in Northwest Indiana.
Pratt, America’s fifth-largest largest corrugated packaging company and the world’s largest, privately-held 100% recycled paper and packaging company, will invest approximately $260 million to build and equip a state-of-the-art recycling plant and supporting facilities in Valparaiso. The expansion is projected to create up to 137 new jobs by 2018.
“Economic development is a core piece of the RDA’s mission and we are pleased to be part of a deal that will allow a globally successful local company to expand its footprint and bring new jobs to Porter County,” says Jeff Good, President of Good Hospitality Services and Porter County’s appointment to the RDA Board of Directors. Good is also Chairman of the RDA’s Economic Development Working Group, which vets requests for Deal Closing Funds. “This deal is notable for being the largest investment we have helped land so far, and we hope to be able to announce more deals in the near future,” he adds.
The Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC), the City of Valparaiso and the RDA worked in concert to provide support for the Pratt expansion.
The RDA incentives represent the fourth time the organization has employed its Deal Closing Fund to help bring new jobs and investment to the region, and the first such use in Porter County. Previous projects that received Deal Closing funds were the CN Kirk Yard expansion in Gary, the new Modern Forge plant in Merrillville and the relocation of Land O’Frost’s headquarters to Munster.
Including the Pratt expansion, these four economic development projects will result in more than $385 million in new investment and more than 550 new jobs in Northwest Indiana.
