CONTACT: Kevin M. DelGobbo, Senior Advisor to the Mayor
Phone: 203-574-6712 / E-mail: kdelgobbo@waterburyct.org

-PRESS RELEASE-

MAYOR O’LEARY: KING INDUSTRIES’ MOVE TO WATERBURY BOOSTS GRAND LIST AND EMPLOYMENT BASE

Industry leading manufacturer will invest $50 million to construct an 80,000-square-foot facility at Waterbury Industrial Commons

WATERBURY – It’s official: King Industries, Inc. of Norwalk, Conn. is expanding to Waterbury.

Mayor Neil M. O’Leary and Richard S. King, the company’s owner and president, signed closing documents on Thursday, August 7, 2014 at Waterbury City Hall for the sale price of $750,000 to purchase approximately 10.75 acres of a remediated brownfield industrial site at Waterbury Industrial Commons, 1975 Thomaston Ave.

King Industries will invest $50 million in the project.  The construction of an 80,000-square-foot manufacturing complex will create an estimated 180 construction jobs and upon completion over 50 permanent manufacturing jobs.

“I’m very excited,” said Mayor O’Leary.  “This is an extraordinary moment for Waterbury.  The addition of meaningful jobs and growth in our grand list represents a positive stimulus for the city.  King Industries will be a wonderful partner in our community.  Their presence offers an opportunity to foster alliances with our educational institutions and community organizations.”

King Industries Inc. is a fourth-generation privately held family business.  Since 1932 it’s been located within the center of Norwalk, Conn.  The company currently employs 200 people in various roles and job functions, ranging from fork lift operators, welders, engineers, to health and safety technicians, electricians, and Ph.D. chemists.

With sales offices in both Holland and China, King Industries is recognized as a reputable and quality-driven global supplier of specialty additives used in high performance lubricants, coatings, fuel, rubber and electronics.  Many of King’s products are vital to end-use consumer products such as cars, trucks, heavy equipment, windmills, planes, and cell phones.

When all phases of construction are completed, the new state-of-the-art plant will consist of several buildings totaling 80,000 square feet.  King is working with experienced professionals to design a plant that is not only well-tailored to the company’s needs but also aesthetically pleasing.  The city’s goal is for the 30-acre Waterbury Industrial Commons campus to become a first-rate premier industrial park.

Under the terms of the purchase agreement, King will build the $50 million manufacturing facility over 10 years and will generate $1.4 million a year in property taxes.

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