Interprint Asking Pittsfield for Tax Incentive in $22M Expansion
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Interprint is investing more than $20 million in its printing facility and its asking the city for a 10-year tax increment financing agreement.
The TIF is expected to save the company $482,000 over the next decade on an estimated $1.9 million more in valuation. The current valuation of the property is $5,580,300.
The decorative printing company is also receiving $300,000 in state Economic Development Incentive Program credits through the state's Economic Assistance Coordinating Council.
The company said on Monday that it will invest $22 million into its Central Berkshire Boulevard facility for additional printing presses and is planning a 57,000 square-foot expansion.
The expansion will mean 20 more jobs at the facility by 2025, bringing the company's staff to about 185.
"We are thankful for the support of our owners and management group so that we can continue to meet the dramatic rise in popularity of our customers' products long into the future," said co-Managing Director Bill Hines Jr. "Creation, and continued support, of family-supporting jobs in Berkshire County has always been a major goal of ours."
Interprint Inc. is the North American headquarters of the Germany-based Interprint Group that was acquired by the global printing company Toppan Inc. in 2019.
The City Council will take up the TIF at Tuesday's meeting.
The TIF will provide 100 percent forgiveness of the incremental increase in property taxes resulting from the construction of the new building in the first and second years and decrease by 20 percent every two years.
The company announced on Monday that it will invest $22 million into its Central Berkshire Boulevard facility for additional printing presses and storage. Separately, another investment of $7 million will replace its oldest press with a new one capable of printing on both paper and film.
"Over the next several years, lnterprint has an opportunity to become the leading domestic supplier in the luxury vinyl tile (LVT) market. To compete with LVT market leaders from China and Taiwan, lnterprint must expand their manufacturing facility, purchase new equipment, and hire more employees," Mayor Linda Tyer wrote in the order requesting the TIF.
"lnterprint's primary customers have enticed them to locate the new manufacturing facility in Georgia by promising lower operational costs. To compete with Georgia, the City of Pittsfield and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts have committed its support for lnterprint's expansion here in Pittsfield."
The company's announcement detailed a 57,000 square-foot expansion to accommodate three new printing machines and storage that will begin construction in November and is set to be completed next summer.
Last month, the Community Development Board approved an amendment to Interprint’s site plan that allows an approximately 57,500 square foot addition to the rear of the building.
It was revealed that this will be the fourth expansion of the building.
After iBerkshires' publication of the meeting coverage, a representative from the company said some of the information provided during the presentation may not be correct and could not confirm any of the details listed in the application.
No further information was received before Monday's press release.
Early this month, the Conservation Commission also approved the expansion. It was said to be a 57,000 square-foot addition during this meeting.
Last week, the Baker-Polito administration announced the approval of five economic development projects supporting job growth and business expansion in the state, one being Interprint's project for expanding a new luxury vinyl tile production.
The administration described the addition as being 54,000 square feet and the company contributing a private investment of $27.5 million (City Council materials quote $28 million). It also stated that Pittsfield had approved the 10-year TIF
Interprint was founded in Pittsfield in 1985 and today is considered one of the world's leading printers of surface decors, including timber products, living room, kitchen and bathroom furniture, laminate flooring, and interior furnishing in trains, ships, and RVs.
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