Parker Products today broke ground on a new 90,000-square-foot facility at 3001 Strawn Drive.
Parker will move all of its operations to the new location once construction is completed, expected in early 2018. The new facility will triple the company’s total production capacity and serve as the hub of Parker’s kill-step validation and food safety initiatives.
Parker Products was founded in Fort Worth in 1926 by I.C. Parker, creator of the “Drumstick” novelty ice cream treat. The company makes confectionary ingredients used in foods and beverages. Among the products are pralines, candy coatings, clusters, liquid flavors and candies. Customers include Starbucks and Dot Foods.
The Fort Worth City Council on Dec. 13 approved a tax abatement agreement with Parker Products that will see the company remain in the city and keep approximately 100 jobs here.
“This is another retention project for us where a local company is looking at consolidating and expansion opportunities, and we are facing competition from Oklahoma,” Fort Worth Director of Economic Development Robert Sturns said during an earlier council meeting when the tax abatement was discussed. .
“We are looking to keep approximately 100 jobs that could grow to 200 over the next several years,” he said. “They are making some strong commitments to Fort Worth hiring, and the jobs pay well, so this was a key part of our analysis in looking at the deal and structuring an incentive agreement.”
Parker Products has committed to invest $17.5 million in real and business personal property investment by the end of 2017 in the project. The company would retain 100 full-time employees and create 30 new full-time jobs as part of the consolidation. Development officials proposed a 10-year, 50 percent tax abatement on real and business personal property, valued at $639,000.
“Our current plant was built in the 1950s, so there were multiple drivers behind building a new facility,” said Greg Hodder, president. “Primarily, the additional space will accommodate anticipated future growth.”
“The new facility is a collaboration among Emergent Construction Technologies, Elements of Architecture, the City of Fort Worth, the HWH Group, and Todd Hubbard with NAI Real Estate,” Hodder said. “We appreciate the work all of these organizations have done and will do as the plant is completed over the next year.” – This story contains information from the FWBP archives.
http://parkerproducts.com/