City of Vancouver welcomes Banfield Pet Hospital’s corporate headquarters relocation

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City of Vancouver officials are welcoming Banfield Pet Hospital’s corporate headquarters to Vancouver.

City staff and officials worked with its economic development partners - Columbia River Economic Development Council (CREDC,) Greater Portland Inc., the Washington Department of Commerce, Washington State University Vancouver, Clark College, and SW Washington Workforce Development Council - to keep this important employer in the Vancouver/Portland region.

“Banfield is a great fit for this community, and their recent announcement speaks volumes about the many positive qualities of Vancouver that make it an attractive place for employers to grow their businesses and for their employees to live,” said Vancouver Mayor Tim Leavitt.

Banfield, a subsidiary of Mars, Inc., is the largest privately-owned veterinary practice in the United States with more than 800 clinics. The planned move of the company’s corporate headquarters would be 10 miles north of its current east Portland site, across the river, to east Vancouver.

Banfield plans to expand from a 152,575-square-foot facility to a new 230,000-square-foot campus, relocate 560 employees and add employees over time. Estimated construction value of the Banfield campus is $36 million and the total capital investment is $48-$67 million in real property and $10-$14 million in personal property.

“We are extremely pleased that Banfield has selected Vancouver as its future home base, which will allow this important employer to expand while remaining in the metro area,” said Chad Eiken, community and economic development director for the City of Vancouver. “This was a team effort in the best sense of the word, and CREDC did an incredible job of ‘quarterbacking’ this recruitment in working with the City, the state, and other community partners.”

“While there is more work to be done to finalize commitments on both sides, I’ve been very impressed by the collaborative approach that the Banfield executives have taken to ensure that there are mutual benefits to both the company and the community through this relocation,” Eiken said.

Public review process

City staff will present Banfield relocation incentive options to members of the Vancouver City Council for consideration. Fee reductions and other incentives will be evaluated in an open public process. All proposals that the City will consider are allowed by state and federal law.

The first public meeting will be 4 p.m. on Mon., May 12, at a Vancouver City Council workshop. The public can attend this meeting at City Hall or watch it online at www.cvtv.org - or CVTV cable Channel 23.



Two other Vancouver City Council meetings this spring will discuss proposed ordinance changes and allow the public to give feedback before the formal development agreement in finalized.

There will be no cash payments to the Banfield Pet Hospital from the City of Vancouver’s general fund. Proposals requiring subsidies will be reviewed by the City Council after confirming that they meet economic development policies and local employment goals.

An initial Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the City and Banfield outlines the proposed project and possible incentives. The MOU is not a contract but rather a statement of intent and a list of ideas for the City Council to review, discuss and decide upon in upcoming months.

Proposed incentives for upcoming council members’ decision involving changes to local ordinances:

• City proposes building a one-acre off-leash dog park open to the public next to the new Banfield facility (estimated cost $150,000).

• City proposes waiving its annual employee surcharge over a five-year period. This city ordinance change would create an incentive for other companies that meet similar job creation thresholds. Banfield’s annual fee reduction would be $20,000.

• The City will consider a possible 50 percent discount of Traffic Impact Fees up to a maximum of $200,000. This City ordinance change would create an incentive for other companies that meet similar local job creation thresholds.

• If Banfield requests a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG federal grant) the City would support their application and the loan to be repaid by Banfield. The City would convert 25 percent, up to $125,000 into a grant if local job creation targets are met.

• Renaming of a non-arterial city street nearby.