Officials work to hold on to ConAgra plant

GARNER -- State, county and town officials are working to put together a financial incentives plan this week in hopes of persuading ConAgra Foods to keep its damaged Slim Jim plant open in Garner.

The amount of financial incentives ConAgra could be offered is still unclear.

"I think to have an impact, it's going to have to be in the millions," said Ken Atkins, director of Wake County Economic Development, which is part of the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce.

Atkins said officials hope to finish an incentive offer in the next couple of days. Incentives could come in the form of grants and tax breaks from the state Department of Commerce and the Town of Garner.

The Garner Town Council plans to have a closed-door meeting Thursday to talk about trying to hang on to ConAgra. So far, town officials have been quiet about how much they're willing to offer the company.

"We're still evaluating all the information we've been getting," said Tony Beasley, Garner's economic development director.

An explosion June 9 rocked the plant, which at the time was the only place in the world that made Slim Jim meat snacks. Four people died and dozens were injured. Months after the blast damaged about half of the plant off Jones Sausage Road, ConAgra laid off about 300 of the factory's 750 workers.

ConAgra has since shifted some of its Slim Jim production to other sites. Now local officials want to make sure the company doesn't pack up and leave town.

"We're going to work as hard as we can to make sure we keep those jobs here," Atkins said.

Incentives will be a factor in ConAgra's decisions, said company spokeswoman Stephanie Childs. But even if the company rebuilds the damaged side of the plant, ConAgra will continue to produce some Slim Jims elsewhere, she said.

For now, Childs said, ConAgra's goal is to "run our Slim Jim business as efficiently as possible."

The Commerce Department does not make incentive packages public until they are final. But ConAgra could qualify for money from the One North Carolina Fund, Atkins said. Commerce gives out money from the fund to recruit jobs and help businesses that are important to the economy.

The company also could qualify for tax credits and breaks from the state and town, Atkins said. He said it's unlikely ConAgra could receive incentives from Wake County because it would not meet the county's $100 million threshold for new investment.

Mayor Ronnie Williams said the town wouldn't be able to offer ConAgra enough money without outside help. He has said he fears ConAgra will leave.

Although the plant has changed owners over the years, it has provided decent-paying jobs in Garner for decades.

"I'm not confident they'll stay," Williams said. "But we wish for the best."