The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Town leaders decry gunmaker’s decision to leave
DEEP RIVER — The decision by gunmaker Smith & Wesson to shutter its manufacturing center in town and relocate to a state with “unwavering support of the 2nd Amendment,” drew skepticism from local leaders this week, who said the move was more likely motivated by profit.
The company announced its plans last week to move headquarters from its longtime home in Springfield, Mass., to Maryville, Tenn., citing attempts by Massachusetts lawmakers to ban the manufacturing of assault weapons in the state.
But despite its stated rationale for the move, Smith & Wesson said it plans to continue manufacturing revolvers at its plant in Massachusetts, while
employing more than 1,000 workers there. Along with its corporate headquarters, the company said it plans to move its smaller facilities in Deep River and in Missouri to a new facility being built with a $120 million investment in Tennessee.
Reasons for move questioned
The collateral impact of the move on Connecticut — a state whose gun laws Smith & Wesson did not address in its announcement of the move — left local officials questioning the company’s motives.
“I think this is purely a business decision, to move to a state with a lower minimum wage, and lower costs for them,” said Deep River First Selectman Angus McDonald. “To throw politics into it is good headlines, but I’m not sure how real that is.”
McDonald said he first learned of the plans to close the Deep River plant, which Smith & Wesson announced Thursday, when he was contacted last week by a reporter from a local TV station. The plant is the third-largest taxpayer in town, McDonald said, adding that the move would deal a “big blow” to municipal revenues.
Smith & Wesson did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday regarding the impact of its decision on Deep River.
In its original statement announcing its decision, the company said the move would affect more than 750 employees across all three impacted locations, beginning in 2023. The company said it will provide relocation assistance to employees who are willing to
move with the company, as well as “enhanced” severance packages to those who do not.
McDonald said the Deep River plant employs more than 100 people, most of whom commute from towns in New London County. The plant serves as the gun-maker’s plastic injection molding facility, producing more than 33 million parts each year.
“We are deeply saddened by the impact that this difficult decision will have on so many of our dedicated employees, but, in order to preserve future jobs, and for the viability of our business in the long term, we are left with no choice but to relocate these functions to a state that does not propose burdensome restrictions on our company,” Smith & Wesson President Mark Smith said in a statement.
The statement referred to legislation proposed by lawmakers in Boston that would ban the manufacturing of assault weapons for commercial sale outside of law enforcement and military uses. Supporters of the bill point to the use of Smith & Wesson weapons during mass shootings in Parkland, Fla., Aurora, Colo., and elsewhere.
Smith & Wesson said that the sales of such weapons accounted for more than 60 percent of its revenues last year.
State Sen. Norm Needleman, DEssex, said he, too, doubted the company’s pronouncements regarding its decision to close the plant. He noted that the facility was once operated by a company with local ties, Tri-Town Plastics, before being purchased by Smith & Wesson in 2014.
“If that’s what they’re saying, that’s what they’re saying,” Needleman said. “Whether that’s true, I’m less than convinced.”
Both Needleman and another area lawmaker, state Rep. Christine Palm, D-Chester, said that the company’s rationale for leaving, if true, represented an unwillingness by Smith & Wesson to work with lawmakers to enact gun control measures that are supported by most Americans, while still protecting the rights of gun owners.
‘A line in the sand’
“It seems like they drew a line in the sand,” Palm said. “The corporate leadership didn’t want to be challenged on gun safety, and they decided to go to a place where they wouldn’t be challenged.”
In addition to its opposition to the proposed Massachusetts law, Smith & Wesson cited a number of other factors behind its move to Tennessee, including the low cost of living, quality of life, outdoor recreation, and a “welcoming, business friendly environment.”
The company did not say whether it was offered any economic incentives by state or local authorities to build its new headquarters. Tennessee is one of nine states that does not levy an income tax.
McDonald said that he would be willing to discuss incentives to keep Smith & Wesson in Deep River, though, he added, “as far as I can tell, their minds are made up.”
Connecticut, long known as an epicenter of gun manufacturing, has seen the industry decline over recent years with companies such as Remington and Winchester Repeating Arms abandoning the state.
Speaking to Hearst in 2019, industry experts cited both economic incentives offered by other states as well as Connecticut’s strict gun laws as reasons for those departures.