Wayfair Hits the Oregon Trail
Why a Boston-based online furniture business found a home in Springfield
It took nearly a year for Wayfair to decide to move to Springfield. And it took a coalition of the willing to make the pitch: … Continue reading
tax breaks
Enterprise Zone Update
Councilor Betty Taylor is a critic of enterprise zones
For a Nov. 21 article, following up on EW’s investigation into enterprise zones, “Big Corporate Handouts with Little Oversight,” EW reached out to members of … Continue reading
Zones of Silence
Local officials still won’t discuss poor oversight of enterprise zones
Money talks, or so the saying goes. But when asked about the lack of oversight in Lane County’s economic development incentive known as an enterprise … Continue reading
Big Corporate Handouts with Little Oversight
Enterprise zones give nearly unsupervised tax breaks to Lane County businesses
In 2009, Seneca Sustainable Energy went looking for a handout from Lane County taxpayers. The company promised to build a cogeneration facility near Eugene Airport … Continue reading
Taxpayer-Subsidized Biogas Plant Underperforms, Asks For Massive Tax Break
But the plant hasn’t performed as promised
A Junction City biogas plant that’s already received millions of dollars in taxpayer subsidies is now more than $325,000 behind on its property tax bill and is fighting Lane County in court over making good on what it owes. JC-Biomethane opened its plant in 2013 with the promise it would generate electricity to power homes by burning off gases from food wastes. The plant is the first in Oregon to use wastes from businesses and restaurants to generate power, according to records and interviews. Continue reading