$500K in incentives OK’d, but not without pushback

The Cobb County Commission approved five incentive packages for businesses Tuesday, relinquishing more than $500,000 in construction per- mitting and business license fees.

Home Depot and Floor & Decor were unanimously approved for incentives, which county staff and members of the board said were necessary to lure or retain busi- nesses that have the option to go elsewhere.

The vote was split on several of the more controversial projects, with commissioners and some residents expressing concern over the appropriateness of the incentives and their negative impact to the county’s bottom line. Several of the companies have already received tax abate- ments from the Cobb Develop- ment Authority and the state.

Commissioner Lisa Cupid said that it was hard to recon- cile rosy projections about the benefits of economic incentives with the county’s ongoing budget struggles. Just before the vote, commissioners heard from two representatives of the Cobb police who warned that low pay and poor benefits were hurting the department.

J.C. Bradbury, an econo- mist at Kennesaw State University, said research shows incentives typically don’t generate the predicted return.

“These numbers that are being generated behind the scenes are technically wild guesses,” he said, referring to the county’s analyses showing each of the projects would break even within a few years.

The vote breakdown was as follows:

Edison Chastain Office, LLC, won $124,931 worth of incentives to build a three- story office rental building on Chastain Meadows Parkway. The vote was 4-1 with Commissioner Keli Gambrill in opposition.

“We keep saying there’s a break-even on incentives, however this is a fee that we are waiving,” Gambrill said.

Commissioner JoAnn Birrell, who represents the district where the new office complex is located, said the proj- ect meets the requirements unanimously adopted by the board a year ago.

Brasfield & Gorrie, LLC, a construction firm, received $90,798 worth of incentives for the renovation of its existing office on Circle 75 Parkway in the Cumberland area. It passed 3-2 with Gambrill in opposi- tion and Cupid abstaining.

Floor & Decor won approval for $90,798 in incen- tives to relocate from Smyrna to Windy Ridge Parkway in East Cobb.

The Home Depot won $213,750 in incentives to lease two existing office buildings on Interstate North Parkway in East Cobb.

BioIQ, a health technology company, received $85,830 in incentives after a 4-1 vote with Cupid in opposition.