Meow Wolf gets $528K job training grant
A dozen companies share in $1.7 million in money from state program
SANTA FE — The state Economic Development Department Friday authorized close to $1.7 million in grants to a dozen businesses to train 150 employees, with the largest award —$528,283 — going to arts and entertainment business Meow Wolf.
Meow Wolf, which operates the popular House of Eternal Return immersive art exhibit in the former Silva Lanes in Santa Fe, plans to open new exhibits in Las Vegas, Nev., Denver, Washington D.C. and Phoenix during the next few years, with other locations possible, CEO Vince Kadlubek told the JTIP board.
Meow Wolf previously received $910,372 in JTIP grants, according to the state.
Depending on the success of the 2020 Las Vegas opening, Kadlubek said, the company may expand its manufacturing capacity, possibly to the city-owned Midtown Campus property on St. Michael’s Drive.
The business. which last year opened a 53,000-squarefoot manufacturing and production facility on Santa Fe’s west side, currently has 471 employees, with 350 involved in manufacturing.
The funding approved by the state will allow Meow Wolf to train 26 employees, with an average hourly wage of $36.60.
Other JTIP grants
$233,184 for Indica Labs Inc. in Albuquerque, 11 employees at an average of $37.23 an hour; $166,230 for Solar Works Energy LLC in Albuquerque, 16 workers at an average of $24.56 an hour; $161,926 for Phyto Remedies LLC in Albuquerque, 25 employees average $18.86 an hour; $138,590 for Unity BPO in Albuquerque, 14 employees at an average hourly wage of $22.50; $120,310 for Landover-Md.-based Systems Integration Inc. with services to TSA in Albuquerque, 22 employees at an average $16.27 an hour; $116,846 to Universal Sheets LLC in Santa Teresa, 15 employees. No rate provided. $95,380 to Load Path LLC of Albuquerque, three workers at an average of $55 an hour; $58,116 to New Mexico Hemp Services LLC of Santa Rosa, two employees at an average of $34.77 an hour; $41,800 to Albuquerque-based IRD Fuel Cells LLC, four workers at an average of $21.25 an hour; $30,030 to Golightly Cashmere with stores in Santa Fe and Taos, a single worker, “an engineer with a passion for textiles,” at $52.50 an hour; $4,800 to Paradise Power Co. of Taos, six employees. No wage disclosed.