The Liberty County Development Authority voted unanimously at a Sept. 12 special called meeting to approve state economic development grants totaling $650,000 for Seohan Auto Georgia Corporation and for Creative Home Ideas. The Georgia Department of Community Affairs provides the money. Both businesses are in Tradeport East, which falls into the military zone for tax credits.
The Georgia Department of Economic Development recommended a $400,000 EDGE Grant for Seohan “to offset the cost of machinery and equipment purchases,” and a $250,000 REBA (Regional Economic Business Assistance) Grant for site preparation for Shemesh Realty Savannah LLC. New York businessman Yaron Shemesh owns both Shemesh Realty and Creative Home Ideas, the company which the LCDA’s “inducement resolution” approved to receive the funding. Seohan is a subsidiary of Korea Movenex Co., Ltd.
On Sept. 12, Seohan held a ribbon-cutting for its Midway manufacturing plant, which will build “H shafts, axles, and brake systems for Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), including Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America.” In 2023, Seohan committed to creating at least 180 new jobs at the facility.
Creative Home Ideas also committed in 2023 to creating at least 70 jobs at its Midway distribution and light manufacturing center, including “light manufacturing, warehouse, shipping, customer service and back office personnel.” The company manufactures and imports bedding, curtains, and rugs from China and licenses brands include Juicy Couture Home, Nautica Home, and Laura Ashley, and Lucky Brand for major retailers like Amazon, Walmart, Costco, Macys, Wayfair, Home Depot, and Bed Bath and Beyond.
According to recommendation letters from Georgia DEcD Commissioner Padgett Wilson, Seohan might have set up shop in either Alabama or South Carolina, and Shemesh Realty Savannah might have chosen to build in South Carolina, had they not gotten the funding.
LCDA Chief Executive Officer Brynn Grant explained why the grants matter to Liberty County.
“Not all projects qualify for this kind of assistance through the state,” Grant said. “These were competitive projects. They were meaningful, not just to the local economy, but to the state economy, and so they qualified for state assistance. So we love when we have projects that the state invests in with us.”
While the state requires companies to create a certain net number of jobs as a condition of these grants, it does not require that those positions go to people who already live in the area.
LCDA Chief Operating Officer Carmen Cole said that, while some of the local labor pool might not be trained for more highly-skilled jobs like engineering, the board’s goal is to help the county school system get local students the educational foundation and skills training for more demanding jobs.
“We were at meetings yesterday, trying to work on that stuff,” Cole said, “but, you know, over time. The reality is, like SNF, you know, there’s a lot of stuff at SNF that they just can’t get local, skilled people to do.” However, when LCDA thinks a company can get most of its labor needs met in Liberty County, she added, it encourages that company to set up shop here.
Because Fort Stewart is nearby, employers also have access to a skilled labor pool of veterans.
State Rep. Al Williams, who chairs LCDA’s board, said the grants “ensure that these jobs are good jobs.” He added that, while some people complain about giving companies incentives to come to Liberty County, “but usually, incentives are given to the companies. When they come, it’s usually (to) barren land that don’t pay no taxes anyhow. When they come off of the incentive, millions gets pumped into the economy. In this case, we’re going to make it as easy as it can be for these companies to be successful. Because when folk get paid, they’re going to spend it. They’re gonna buy houses, cars, gonna spend money on the economy. This just ensures a vibrant economy for Liberty County.”
How long will that take?
“Most of our rebates are no more than 10 years,” Williams explained. “And in those 10 years, to give an example, Target. Let’s take $5,000 worth of land that wasn’t doing anything. Multiply it by 20 years, that’s $100,000. That tax bill, it should be $1,000,000. Ten times what the whole rebate was worth.”
Because of that investment, Williams said, “they’ve stayed stuck. And now, not only are we reaping the jobs and the other benefits, we’re gonna now have them on the tax rolls.”
A check of county tax rolls shows the land at the Target property is valued at $3.83 million, while the improvements bring the property’s value to over $90.7 million. Target’s tax assessment for 2024 is $1,532,626.99. A federal suit Target had brought against LCDA was dismissed with prejudice Aug. 5 and Grant said Target is now responsible for paying ad valorem taxes to Liberty County.
Liberty County Chairman Donald Lovette, who sits on LCDA’s board, said, “There’ll be some people who will be (from) out of the county. Some of my people work outside of the county, so I can’t tell them, you know. But we’re on a campaign to encourage our local people to consider the local jobs so they don’t have to commute when there are good jobs that are paying well right here at home.”
Lovette added he has friends who work at Gulfstream who have told him, “‘I’ve been working here so long. I hate to change that.’ I said, ‘I understand that. I do. But for those who don’t have that kind of tie-in, to have a job right here at home, decent salary, all that commute’s gone …. it’s just a win-win.’”
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