FQ Tissue Expansion Gets Third Tax Abatement

CASTANEA TOWNSHIP — All three applicable Clinton County taxing bodies have given their okay for a tax abatement program to further the local effort to attract a third paper machine to First Quality Tissue’s Lock Haven plant.

The Castanea Township supervisors Monday night added their unanimous approval to that of the Keystone Central School District and the Clinton County Commissioners. All three taxing bodies gave their support for First Quality participation in LERTA, a real estate tax abatement program used as an incentive to further commercial/industrial growth.

Representatives from the Clinton County Economic Partnership had called on the local governmental units as part of “due diligence,” the legwork to attract a third First Quality tissue machine at its existing site in Castanea Township.

The commissioners last week approved the LERTA designation in a 3-0 vote and the school board followed suit, voting 8-0 with board member Albert Jones, a First Quality employee, abstaining.

All three township supervisors, Bonnie Poorman, Terry Neff and Ron Welch Sr., supported the Partnership request on Monday.

As reported earlier, the Castanea/Lock Haven site is one of the finalists for the new machine which officials said would mean 184 new jobs, in addition to the 453 already working at the former International Paper site. The First Quality total investment is said to be worth more than $300 million.

As explained by Partnership CEO Mike Flanagan, the LERTA program runs for 10 years with a gradual increase in real estate taxes each year. The LERTA program has been used for the two existing tissue machines at the site, one almost complete, the other three years away from the full complement of real estate taxes.

No timetable has been announced as to when First Quality will make a decision on the location of the new machine.