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A Glasgow, Mo. steel firm is shutting its doors after being open less than a year, despite over $800,000 in state tax incentives.
Bonnybrook Steel Forms, a Calgary, Alberta-based firm, moved into the city's industrial area in a vacant building that housed a similar company a decade ago. In April, Gov. Jay Nixon announced the news and pointed out a $847,000 in tax incentives to the factory, including more than $700,000 in in payroll tax credits through the Missouri Quality Jobs Program.
Over the course of its first three years, the plant was slated to hire more than 100 people, and Gov. Nixon lauded the group for its decision to move to Glasgow.
Former Chief Operating Officer and co-owner Elliot James said the plant laid off most of its 41 workers in October. Iman Auction Co. of Salisbury, Mo. has been hired to liquidate Bonnybrook's inventory, and much of its machinery will be sold at auction Dec. 21.
The closure stems from a payment dispute with a customer over “a significant amount,” James said in an interview with the Columbia Daily Tribune. “We were doing really, really well,” he said. “And we got blindsided by this.”
According to a suit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, a concrete structure manufacturer, Rotondo Weirich Enterprises Inc. has a near-million-dollar contract with Bonnybrook to build steel forms for one of its contracts. After paying nearly $500,000 of its fee, Rotondo alleges that Bonnybrook refused to release part of its products until Rotondo had paid the other half.
According to the Columbia Daily Tribune article, Bonnybrook has not filed for bankruptcy, and James remains optimistic that the plant could open again, pending the results of the sale.
Richard Fowler, chairman of the Howard County Economic Development Council and CEO of the Howard Electric Cooperative was disappointed in the news of the closing.
"It was unfortunate that it had to close," said Fowler. "We worked very hard to get it here, but any new business that opens up has challenges of being sustainable."
Fowler hopes in better times, Bonnybrook can come back in reopen in Glasgow.
"Any time you create jobs, it's very important to the city of Glasgow," he said. "(The plant) meant a lot."
A Glasgow, Mo. steel firm is shutting its doors after being open less than a year, despite over $800,000 in state tax incentives.
Bonnybrook Steel Forms, a Calgary, Alberta-based firm, moved into the city's industrial area in a vacant building that housed a similar company a decade ago. In April, Gov. Jay Nixon announced the news and pointed out a $847,000 in tax incentives to the factory, including more than $700,000 in in payroll tax credits through the Missouri Quality Jobs Program.
Over the course of its first three years, the plant was slated to hire more than 100 people, and Gov. Nixon lauded the group for its decision to move to Glasgow.
Former Chief Operating Officer and co-owner Elliot James said the plant laid off most of its 41 workers in October. Iman Auction Co. of Salisbury, Mo. has been hired to liquidate Bonnybrook's inventory, and much of its machinery will be sold at auction Dec. 21.
The closure stems from a payment dispute with a customer over “a significant amount,” James said in an interview with the Columbia Daily Tribune. “We were doing really, really well,” he said. “And we got blindsided by this.”
According to a suit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri, a concrete structure manufacturer, Rotondo Weirich Enterprises Inc. has a near-million-dollar contract with Bonnybrook to build steel forms for one of its contracts. After paying nearly $500,000 of its fee, Rotondo alleges that Bonnybrook refused to release part of its products until Rotondo had paid the other half.
According to the Columbia Daily Tribune article, Bonnybrook has not filed for bankruptcy, and James remains optimistic that the plant could open again, pending the results of the sale.
Richard Fowler, chairman of the Howard County Economic Development Council and CEO of the Howard Electric Cooperative was disappointed in the news of the closing.
"It was unfortunate that it had to close," said Fowler. "We worked very hard to get it here, but any new business that opens up has challenges of being sustainable."
Fowler hopes in better times, Bonnybrook can come back in reopen in Glasgow.
"Any time you create jobs, it's very important to the city of Glasgow," he said. "(The plant) meant a lot."
