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ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL—APRIL 11, 2016 5 Mayor Grant clarified that the article in the April Newsletter was written by City staff and the Communications Committee inadvertently put in a byline which stated that the article was written by Land O'Lakes. Mr. Larson thanked Mayor Grant for this clarification. He provided further comment on the numerous ways Arden Hills residents contributed to the community without seeking handouts. Mayor Grant closed the public hearing at 7:32 p.m. Mayor Grant requested staff speak to the benefits the City would be receiving through the proposed tax abatement. Community Development Director Hutmacher commented further on the benefits Arden Hills would receive by retaining the headquarters within the community. She reported that Land O'Lakes has 1,738 employees currently and will be adding another 200 after their project is completed. She noted that these jobs were high paying and that these employees supported the local businesses. She explained that if Land O'Lakes were to leave, the City would have a difficult time filling this headquarter space. She indicated that the City portion of Land O'Lakes property taxes were currently $64,000 which is approximately 2% of the City's levy. She discussed how the City would be impacted if this user were to move out of the community. Mayor Grant recalled that 97% of Arden Hills' residents have a high school education and 60+% have a college education. He discussed how the Land O'Lakes jobs were well-suited for Arden Hills. He requested further comment from Land O'Lakes regarding the new jobs that would be created over the next few years. Marcia Droege, Land O'Lakes, stated that through 2024, Land O'Lakes is expected to have 2,500 employees on its campus. She reported that the 200 new jobs are required through the Job Creations Fund and the MIF loan, but noted that historically Land O'Lakes has been growing at 3% to 6% per year at the headquarter site. She estimated that the campus will have an additional 600 employees in the next decade. It is Land O'Lakes' goal to keep all of its employees on one campus. Councilmember Wicklund asked why the company needed assistance given its healthy growth over recent years. Bob Glass, Land O'Lakes Tax Advisor, stated that after running the numbers, it was fitting for Land O'Lakes to build a new facility, except for a gap between the cost of building an expansion compared to the cost of moving into an existing building. He explained that the Board approved the construction of a new building so long as a certain level of assistance was offered to fill this gap. Councilmember Wicklund requested further information on how Land O'Lakes redistributed its $100 million in net income. Mr. Glass reported that Land O'Lakes is a co-op and that the net earnings are returned directly to the farmers and co-op members.