NEWS

From Paper Age news:

Feb. 3, 2025 - International Paper (IP) has acquired land in Waterloo, Iowa, for the construction of a state-of-the-art corrugated box plant.

According to the Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA), IP plans to "construct a 900,000-square-foot corrugated products manufacturing facility.

"The project represents a $260 million capital investment and is expected to create 90 jobs incented at a qualifying wage of at least $23.01 per hour," the IEDA said in a written statement.

In addition, the IEDA board awarded IP tax benefits through the High Quality Jobs program.

On a fourth quarter 2024 earnings call with analysts, IP's Chairman and CEO, Andy Silvernail, mentioned the future box plant.

"I'm excited to share we are investing in a greenfield state-of-the-art corrugated box facility in Waterloo, Iowa. This is a great example of the investments we're making as we continue with our ambitious plans to optimize our mill-to-box system and generate attractive returns. This world-class box plant is designed to deliver on our strategy, 20% lower cost, designed in product quality and just-in-time service. All of this is aligned to a geography and end markets where we are positioned to win."

The new box plant in Waterloo will be in close proximity to IP's containerboard mill in Cedar River, which produces recycled containerboard from Old Corrugated Containers (OCC).

"The facility will be strategically located close to some of our best customers, specifically in the protein segment, while being in a freight advantage distance from one of our mills. The plan is to start construction this year and targeting for a start-up in 2026. So again, it's a best-in-class facility designed specifically to delight our customers, achieve a low-cost position to drive profitable growth," Silvernail said.

International Paper (NYSE: IP; LSE: IPC) is the global leader in sustainable packaging solutions. With company headquarters in Memphis, Tennessee, USA, and EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) headquarters in London, UK, IP employs more than 65,000 team members and serve customers around the world with operations in more than 30 countries.

SOURCE: International Paper

From Waterloo/CF Courier

WATERLOO — The city’s headquarters is moving to a piece of riverside property.

Waterloo City Hall is expected to take up residence in the former Courier building at 100 E. Fourth St. by 2026. The three-story building overlooking the Cedar River’s north bank will house the police department, city departments and City Council chambers.

A contract between the city and Rodney Blackwell, owner of the now-empty Courier building, will appear on the Dec. 2 council agenda.

The contract involves a real estate swap. Blackwell would give the Courier building to the city and the city would give him City Hall at 715 Mulberry St. and the old Carnegie Library at 620 Mulberry St. The former library houses the human rights department, the Waterloo Housing Authority and the neighborhood services department.

The city would also give Blackwell a $6.1 million economic development grant to redevelop the city buildings. He would have four years to begin the project.

The move comes after the city did an assessment of all of its buildings in 2017. The most troubled building was the Waterloo Convention Center, which underwent a more than $13 million renovation. Second on that list was city hall, which was built in 1964.

Noel Anderson, the city’s community planning and development director, said it would cost $11.9 million to rehabilitate City Hall and the Carnegie library. To tear down and rebuild a new City Hall on the same property would cost $18.8 million.

The city doesn’t collect property taxes on its buildings. City Hall is currently assessed at $4.5 million while the library has a $2.1 million assessment. The minimum annual property taxes Blackwell would pay, without rebates, is $253,364. Anderson said it is common to give developers a 70% tax rebate for 15 years on projects like this – which would equate to $105,000 in annual property taxes.

Currently, Blackwell pays $114,000 in property taxes at the old Courier building, which is assessed at $3 million.

Anderson thinks whatever Blackwell does with the two buildings will not negatively affect taxpayers. He also believes the move for the city is a plus for the residents.

“We think that we can save some costs to the taxpayers and all that by all being consolidated to one building,” he said.

The East Fourth Street building “has no issues,” he said, as it was built in 1998. Any money put toward the project would be for redesign of the interior – mostly for the police department.

There are no renderings of the building, but the police department would be housed on the first floor. Anderson said he expects the area to be more private than the current space at city hall. Locker rooms, meeting rooms and holding cells would also need to be constructed.

Some police vehicles could be parked in one of the lanes on Fifth Street, while others would be in the parking ramp. All parking for the new city hall would be in the parking ramp that connects to the building.

Anderson said the police department was looking at adding a new police entrance at its current location, but the project was halted due to the potential move.

He said the new building would have improved security, better functions and improved “flow.”

“We have a very good opportunity to design the space exactly for what we know the departments need,” he said.

The new building was constructed as the corporate headquarters of Waterloo Industries. At the time of construction, the city invested $900,000 toward the project for land donation, tax abatement and tax increment financing.

The Courier occupied the space from 2011 to 2022, before moving to its current newsroom in the Cedar Falls Industrial Park.

From KWWL News

WATERLOO, Iowa (KWWL) -- After years of uncertainty, the Crossroads Mall district in Waterloo may soon be demolished.

The City of Waterloo entered a development agreement on Monday during the City Council meeting which will re-imburse the company for its purchase and demolition of the building, around $20 million dollars, through TIF. It's the same development program the city has used to redevelop the North Crossing area.

The developers are represented by McClure- a company that is also part of a similar project wrapping up right now in Fort Dodge. Their mall, also called Crossroads, was demolished and is now set to be reopened as the 'Corridor Plaza' by the end of this year.

Waterloo Mayor Quentin Hart says the Waterloo Crossroads project is larger, but he is confident in the company's vision.

"The project is probably almost double the size of that campus there- and so what could potentially happen, could be apartments, retail, big lots, power centers with retail and restaurants happening, but we also want to make sure that whatever is done, that it’s compatible with the incredible things that’s happening around it," he said.

With top rated amenities in the area such as Lost Island parks and KOA campground, Mayor Hart says the company will need to be creative in what they bring to the Crossroads district.

"You have the KOA Campground, you have the retail around it with Best Buy, Dick's Sporting Goods, you have Applebees, you have restaurants, but you also have the community college, you have the casino, you have the number two water park in the entire country, and a growing theme park. So there’s plenty of amenities already, but we just want to make sure that our conversations with the developer, that it’s compatible," he said, adding, "it’d be great to be able to not have to travel out of town to get a pair of underwear. Right now it’s been very tough on the retail aspect, Dillard's has left and a couple stores left, but seeing their ability to bring back that retail so we have that right here."

Mayor Hart says he understands residents have emotional ties to the mall- since he too grew up in the area.

"Growing up here, I remember Saturdays at the crossroads and all the stores, and you know now being in this position where I see some of the very anchor stores that we had have gone bankrupt, or Chapter 11 and are no longer there- but things change, times change, and we’ll always have those memories but we are shaping things, building the community today for tomorrow," he said, adding, "nostalgia wise, when the mall opened up years ago and people had that feeling that 'I can go to the mall, I can do that'- well across the country malls are transforming in places. So how can we be hip, how can we be trendy, and how can we speak to the community and work with the community to address some of the things they want to see."

The developer is hoping to close the sale of the mall by January, and begin demolition in the summer. Revitalizing the Crossroads mall is a part of the city's 2030 vision plan, and Mayor Hart says it's fulfilling to see them move closer to that goal.

"It’s not going to be something that happens overnight. You know you’ll get the ‘ooo my god it’s happening right now’ and then in a couple years later it’s not moving, fast enough. These developments take time. There's a lot of technically things that go into creating the right type of infrastructure, in addition to the buildings, but we are on the right track for that 2030 vision," he said.

To see more of what the company has done in Fort Dodge, click this link.