DevelopOhio

A city that just a few years ago used "the land assemblage and brownfields revitalization tools of redevelopment," along with a payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) agreement, to enthusiastically land "a low-impact project with high employment" is now threatening to bring a lawsuit against the company, The Bond Buyer reports. Huy Fong Foods opened its 650,000-square-foot, $40 million Sriracha sauce plant in Irwindale in Los Angeles County, California, in October 2010, creating hundreds of jobs, including many high-paying positions. The city provided the company with "a $15 million interest-only loan for 10 years with a balloon payment at the end to cover the cost of the land" – a redeveloped brownfield – as well as a PILOT of $2.5 million payable over 10 years. Residents living near the project, however, began complaining that the plant was responsible for "burning eyes, itching throats and a pervasive smell of chili peppers." Despite Huy Fong’s installation of a filtration system to reduce the emissions, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge has "ordered that the plant cease any activity resulting in noxious odors" and the California Department of Public Health has ordered "that the factory should hold the product for 30 days before shipping, halting shipments through mid-January." City officials are working with the company to find a solution to keep the project alive, which appears to be in the form of another filtration system that will cost between $500,000 and $600,000, the article said. For more, read the full story.