LANSING (WKZO-AM) — Hearings have begun on a controversial plan to give tax breaks to a Nevada data processor.
Switch officials told a House committee Tuesday that West Michigan is currently their No. 1 choice for a $5 billion data center.
“We fell in love with Grand Rapids and we fell in love with Michigan,” Jason Mendenhall, an executive vice president with the company, said Tuesday.
Mendenhall said the creation of 1,000 jobs is a conservative figure, but, if you consider the spin-off factor, it could mean 3,500 new jobs.
Gov. Rick Snyder says he would like to see the company guarantee jobs, but repopulating the vacant Steelcase Pyramid is a great opportunity.
“It’s been there for a long time and, if it can create jobs in the Grand Rapids and west Michigan area, that would be a positive,” Snyder said.
Still, the idea of giving a company that is already wildly profitable a huge tax break when the state budget is stressed is giving some lawmakers pause.
More hearings are planned. Both the House and Senate have tentative plans to vote on a package of bills Thursday.
– John McNeill
