City and county leaders in northern Wisconsin hold out little hope they’ll recover most of the money they awarded to a now-bankrupt aircraft company as part of plans to build a plane manufacturing facility in Superior. Kestrel Aircraft Company and its parent company ONE Aviation Corp. filed for bankruptcy last October along with 10 other subsidiaries. At the time of filing, the New Mexico-based business listed a total debt of more than $198 million. Of that, the company owes $53 million in loans to state and local governments, including around $3.4 million to the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp.
In 2012, Kestrel pledged to create 600 jobs in Superior in what was billed as the city’s largest job creation project since World War II. The city’s redevelopment authority loaned Kestrel $2.6 million and Douglas County provided a $500,000 loan through its revolving loan fund. As of last fall, the company owed the city $1.7 million and Douglas County $479, 421, according to court documents filed in Delaware.
Watching Scotty blow a lot of hot air
10/22/2017 update, "Kestrel Aircraft: Is this a variation of Scott Walker's Foxconn strategy?", starts here.
Reported in WEDC threatens legal action against Kestrel Aircraft as another deal goes south. (Wisconsin State Journal, 10/22/2017
Jadin sang a different tune here.
Speaking of tunes.....
Original 7/13/2014 post, "Kestrel Aircraft: All these incentives, but no construction, no jobs", starts here.
Incentive: something, especially money , that encourages a person or organization to do something.
Kestrel to relocated in Superior creating 600 jobs. (WEDC, 1/16/2012)
Construction schedule as reported by Business North
- Spring 2012. Winter Street composite plant
- 2013: Bong Airport assembly plant
Kestrel Aircraft construction update red alert
A rough week for WEDC. (Capital Times, 7/13/2014)
Twiddling thumbs in Superior. But 30 months after that announcement, no ground has been broken on either a plant to manufacture structural components or an assembly facility. The latest report notes a dispute between Kestrel and the state over how much was actually promised to Kestrel.
Kestrel has also received two business development loans from WEDC worth a total of $4 million but has not been making payments. It also has a $2.4 million loan from the city of Superior, with payments on that loan due to begin in October.
Who's minding the WEDC store?
Related posts:
The Eaton Corporation/WEDC timeline of shame. (7/10/2014)
Wisconsin featured in report on privatized state economic development agencies. (10/25/2013)
Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation pledge: Following the money. (7/23/2013)
Incompetence rewarded. (5/9/2013)
And while we're at it, let's take a look at WEDC 's core values. (5/9/2013)
WEDC Public Information Officer Resigns After 1 Month on the Job. (5/9/2013)
Plenty of time for messaging but none for fixing what ails WEDC. (5/9/2013)
Previous WEDC audits? What previous audits? (5/8/2013)
Are you seeing a trend yet? (5/8/2013)
Echoes. (5/7/2013)
Get me rewrite. (5/4/2013)
Legislative Audit Bureau Report on Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation: The "Cliff Notes" Version. (5/3/2013
"Tales of woe never end at WEDC." (4/25/2013)
Enterprise Florida and Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation share a lack of transparency. (2/28/2013)
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