TOPEKA, Kan. --
Jostens, the well-known maker of class rings and
school yearbooks, announced June 30, 2004, that it will create 175
to 225 additional jobs at the company's Topeka manufacturing plant
over the next 12 to 18 months.
The new workers, including 40 added in June,
will produce covers for high school and college diplomas. About
1,000 people currently work at the 35-year-old plant.
"Helping school communities build and express
their pride has long been Jostens' mission," said Jack Larsen, Jostens'
senior vice president of operations. "Graduation is a significant
event in the lives of students, parents, faculty and staff, and
our Topeka employees will play an important role in making it a
great experience."
The Topeka plant was selected over other Jostens'
facilities in California, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas and Winnipeg,
Canada. The announcement also came just weeks before Topeka residents
were to head for the polls to vote on a proposed local sales tax
increase to fund economic development.
The Greater Topeka Chamber of Commerce worked
for eight months to develop a local assistance package of up to
$375,000 over a three-year period based upon Jostens' commitment
to increase employment in the Topeka-Shawnee County area. Also involved
in the deal were city and county officials, the Kansas Department
of Commerce and Westar Energy.
"The help from the City of Topeka, Shawnee
County, GO Topeka [chamber] and the Kansas Department of Commerce
has been significant in planning this expansion announcement," said
Robert Spayd, plant manager for Jostens in Topeka. "We have been
able to identify incentives and training dollars that will make
our growth plans easier and more cost effective."
Jim Parrish, chairman of Growing Topeka, the
committee promoting the passage of the half-cent sales tax for jobs,
bridges and roads that was to be put before the voters in an August
primary, said, "It is projects like this one that lend credibility
to setting aside a portion of the economic development sales tax
dollars for our local companies. We must think long-term as a community,
and plan for economic growth and being able to continue to provide
incentives for job growth and road and bridge improvements."
Doug Kinsinger, president and CEO of the chamber,
said the local-option sales tax generated $8.4 million for economic
development in the last year and a half. "The initiative on the
ballot in August extends that tax for another 10 years and slightly
increases the tax," he said. "It will commit $5 million a year for
12 years for a total of $60 million for economic development."
Kinsinger said he would like to raise more
money. "Even $5 million a year won't incentivize every project,"
he said. "My goal is to raise $200 million in incentives. We are
close to $300 million in projects announced just in the last two
and a half years."
Among the major projects announced or completed
recently in Topeka:
- Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. invested $100 million in its
Topeka plant.
- Blue Cross Blue Shield announced a $21-million corporate
headquarters facility that will break ground in downtown Topeka
in fall 2004.
- Hills Pet Nutrition announced an $11-million facility.
- Security Benefit Group invested $50 million in a new headquarters
that
opened last year.
- Target celebrated the grand opening of its 1.4-million-
sq.-ft. (130,060-sq.-m.) distribution center in Topeka on
July 22, 2004. More than 11,000 people applied for the 650
jobs at the $80-million warehouse.
- Sports Car Club of America relocated its headquarters from
Denver to the Forbes Industrial Air Park in Topeka and moved
60 workers to Kansas.
