Civic San Diego Wednesday announced a $10 million investment that is expected to create jobs at Ajinomoto Foods‘ Otay Mesa plant.
The investment, which is funded by federal tax credits, will finance equipment and building improvements necessary to add a third manufacturing production line to the plant next year, which is expected to support 80 to 100 new jobs over the next several years.
“The support of our manufacturing firms is a key component of the economic prosperity element of the recently adopted Otay Mesa Community Plan and this project will not only add new jobs, but it will also support small businesses in and around Otay Mesa that will provide products and services to Ajinomoto,” said Andrew Phillips, Civic San Diego interim president.
Tyson Foods previously employed 480 full-time employees at the Otay Mesa plant, but ceased operations in April. Ajinomoto, which makes Asian, Italian, Mexican and other frozen food products, bought the factory and retained 352 jobs.
The new investment comes through the federal New Markets Tax Credit Program, which is intended to drive investment in business and real estate projects in low-income communities.
The program attracts investment capital by allowing corporations and individuals to receive a credit against their federal income taxes in exchange for making direct equity investments in entities like Civic San Diego.
Thus far, Civic San Diego has closed eight deals totaling more than $100 million, in the process supporting the construction or rehabilitation of more than 400,000 square feet of real estate as well as retention and creation of more than 700 permanent jobs, according to Michael Lengyel, the group’s assistant vice president of economic development.
Civic San Diego was created by the city of San Diego to spearhead downtown redevelopment projects.
