TWIN FALLS, Idaho — Travelers on Kimberly Road or Orchard Street on the east side of Twin Falls may have noticed some big concrete buildings going up. Two of the first three buildings in Phase 1 of the Gemini Business Park are standing. Situated on 76 acres behind Clif Bar and Chobani, the park will ultimately offer over a million square feet of Class-A industrial space.
- The first phase of the Gemini Business Park should be ready for tenants by October.
- Eight phases are planned, with industrial space ranging from 6,000 square feet to 200,000 square feet.
- Through an agreement with the Urban Renewal Agency, Summit Creek Development will be eligible for reimbursement of upgrades to infrastructure like road, sidewalk, electrical, water, sewer, and gas utilities.
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
"You can see them putting on the roof here,” Tyler Jeffers told Idaho News 6. “That 20 ft clear height is what's important for most of our tenants.”
Jeffers has put in years of effort getting this project to this point. As managing partner of Summit Creek Development, Jeffers has herded the plans permits and negotiations through dozens of meetings.
Now, Gemini Business Park's first phase is well underway. It's the newest facility in the neighborhood that includes Chobani and Clif Bar.
Both of those companies spent a lot of time and money to design buildings that not only function really well for their businesses but are also attractive from the outside.
Another 20 buildings are planned over the next several years totaling more than a million square feet.
Buildings will vary in size and can accommodate tenants needing anywhere from 6,000 to 200,000 square feet.
Similar to its industrial neighbors, the Gemini Business Park is a designated urban renewal area.
"It brings a lot of opportunity for other companies to come in and relocate to Twin, which then, in turn, raises our tax base that they're going to be paying for property taxes, so it continues to take the existing land and grow that tax base,” Rudy Ashenbrener told Idaho News 6.
Ashenbrener is chairman of the Twin Falls Urban Renewal Agency, which has a 20-year agreement to reimburse portions of costs for infrastructure that benefit the general public. Anything from roads and sidewalks to gas utilities, water, and sewer.
Urban renewal areas sometimes get mistaken for a tax break, but Ashenbrener said the Magic Valley has made good use of the mechanism to promote economic development.
“He does not get all those taxes back. He doesn't 'not pay taxes,'” Ashenbrener said. “But under the agreements, the property taxes as it continue to increase as he improves the land he gets reimbursement on the things that we are able to help with.”
For Jeffers, part of the job is meeting anticipated needs, and growing with the growth.
"Most of the companies that come here and locate here are doing so because they want to be here,” Jeffers said.
