The Blueprint Intergovernmental Agency, made up of city and county commissioners, is backing a nearly $2.6 million, six-year incentive deal aimed at recruiting a logistics and fulfillment center to locate in the area.
The proposed development is code-named Project Mango, and if the company selects Tallahassee, it could bring some 1,300 jobs to the area.
"The Project Mango—if we land it—the sky is the limit," said City Commissioner Dianne Williams-Cox.
The vote was nearly unanimous with City Commissioner Jack Porter voting no.
“I don’t think tax incentives are an effective way to boost employment," Porter said. "I support growth and diversifying the economy. You see that new transportation infrastructure—we talk about opportunity costs, there are other ways we could be spending this money—gets a 1[five to ten percent] greater return on investment in cities and counties that have done that.”
Porter cites a 2019 report from the Brookings Institution which found incentive packages are not the sole factor in whether a company chooses a location.
The unnamed company is also considering other locations for its fulfillment center. Its proposed location in Tallahassee is on the east side of Tallahassee on Mahan and I-10.
