Bouldin agrees to buy Findlay: Deal won’t be finalized until financing approved
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The deal has not been finalized, however, and is contingent on Bouldin obtaining financing.
“I’ve learned not to count my chickens before they hatch,” Bouldin said yesterday from Washington, D.C. where he is meeting with U.S. Reps. Lincoln Davis, Jim Cooper and Bart Gordon about bringing jobs to Middle Tennessee. “But we’ve agreed on price and we’re moving ahead with our schedule.”
The county is trying to help Bouldin obtain financing, according to director of economic development Don Rigsby. Rigsby said he has scheduled a meeting this Thursday between Bouldin and an agency which arranges low-interest financing for industries.
“This is something we try to do for any big business or industry that needs financing,” said Rigsby.
WastAway has already purchased the former Aquatech building and is currently using that facility to turn household garbage into what is called “fluff.” That fluff is then converted into usable materials such as potting soil, landscape timbers and fence posts.
Bouldin says the plan is to move part of the extrusion process to the Findlay building, which has roughly 100,000 square feet. He said the fluff would still be manufactured in the old Aquatech building, which is now WastAway headquarters, and then transported to Findlay where it would be transformed into timbers and posts.
Bouldin said yesterday he did not want to estimate how many jobs would be created with the purchase of the Findlay building.
He is expected to have a more clear indication of potential jobs Thursday for the financing meeting.
Rigsby said the prospect of filling another empty manufacturing facility is encouraging.
“It will get another of our buildings off the market and it will create jobs,” said Rigsby. “You don’t buy a building that big to keep it empty. You buy it to put people to work.”