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Frontier Co-op expansion underway in Belle Plaine
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
BELLE PLAINE — A $25 million expansion project in Belle Plaine will provide additional jobs and economic growth for the community, officials said during a symbolic ground-breaking ceremony Friday.
Preparations for construction of an addition to the Frontier Co-op warehouse at 200 Industrial Park Blvd. in Belle Plaine were already visible as state and local officials gathered at the Co-op to recognize the expansion.
Frontier Co-op has had a presence in Benton County for 45 of its 50 years, beginning in Norway, said Frontier Vice President of Human Resources Megan Schulte. The company purchased the Belle Plaine location 10 years ago, a vacant building formerly owned by Banco Manufacturing, to use as a distribution center.
“We’re seeing a lot of growth in our brands,” said Schulte. In order to expand production at the Norway plant, Frontier will move the distribution operations currently at Norway to the Belle Plaine distribution facility.
Frontier Co-op makes the Simply Organic line of products at its Norway facility and essential oils and body care products under the name Aura Cacia at its Urbana facility.
Frontier will be adding production lines at the Norway plant in the next three to five years, Schulte said.
Frontier has been working on the project for a few years, knowing it needed to expand, said Schulte. The 90,000-square-foot addition will give Frontier a total of 210,000 square feet in Belle Plaine and will add 16 jobs, she said.
Iowa Economic Development Authority is kicking in $780,000 in incentives and tax credits, said Schulte, and the city of Belle Plaine is providing tax increment financing.
“The city’s been amazing to work with,” said Schulte. “Very supportive.”
Frontier also received help from Benton Development Group and Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, said Chief Executive Officer Tony Bedard.
“In 2015, we bought this facility, and its probably one of the better decisions that I have made in my 25 years as CEO,” said Bedard.
Belle Plaine City Manager Steve Beck was a big help pulling all the pieces together for the expansion, Bedard said. “[He] really got us over this hump.
“This makes good sense for us,” Bedard said.
Belle Plaine Mayor Lyle Morrow described Belle Plaine as a proud and close-knit community. The Frontier expansion is “a testament to the strength of our community,” he said.
Debi Durham, director of Iowa Economic Development Authority said she’s a big fan of Frontier and of the City of Belle Plaine. The city has an award-winning main street and is continually doing restoration.
Frontier has created a type of workplace where people thrive, said Durham. It’s been recognized nationally as one of the best places for a parent to work because of its child care initiatives.
“We couldn’t get where we are today without all our partners,” said Bedard.
The expansion will bring more jobs to Belle Plaine and will have a positive economic impact on the town, said Beck. “It’s a huge blessing to the community.”
In addition to TIF incentives, the city helped with land acquisition, utility hook-ups and the FAA aerial review required because of the facility’s proximity to the airport.
The city acted as liaison with state and federal agencies because of a tight timeline, said Beck. The city expedited flood-plain permits from the Department of Natural Resources, which usually takes several months, said Beck.
Belle Plaine hasn’t seen anything of this magnitude in a long time, said Beck.
“It’s a very large project. We’re optimistic about the future and what this means for our community, for our region and for our state,” Beck said.
