Jeffersontown economic development program scores biggest year in program history

JEFFERSONTOWN, Ky. (WDRB) -- More than a thousand new high-paying jobs are planned in Jeffersontown, and local leaders are pointing to one reason.

Jeffersontown Mayor, Bill Dieruf, says the new jobs are part of a deal the city is cutting with companies that meet specific criteria.

The program is called the Jeffersontown Occupation Business Savings (JOBS) Program.

Half of the company’s new occupational taxes would be rebated back to the company for five years under the program.

“When you go out to eat, if you've got something half price, you're going to go try it,” Dieruf said. “So we want you to come try us.”

There are 1,074 new jobs planned in Jeffersontown over the next five years as a result of deals made in 2019.

The JOBS program started in 2014, and it’s coming off its best year yet.

The program participants include:

Baptist Healthcare System Inc with a new 85,000-square-foot information technology operations center at 1901 Campus Place
Chewy Inc.’s pet pharmacy fulfillment center at 11403 Bluegrass Parkway
Kentuckiana Curb Company Inc. at 2706 Blankenbaker Rd. and 2621 Technology Dr.
Mortenson Family Dental Holdings Inc. at 10300 Linn Station Rd.
YPG LLC at 10400 Linn Station Rd.
Wilson Controls at 1701 Cargo Ct.

The average annual pay per new job from the 2019 projects is $72,720.

“Giving half the taxes back, it's a win-win for both of us,” Dieruf said. “We get a higher salary base in J-town. We attract the quality and the quantity of employees we need to survive.”

“They've very high paying jobs,” Jeffersontown Economic Development Authority Director Mike Kmetz said. “It makes sense to provided that helping hand, and I think we've been able to show over the last five years that we've increased employment in the community far more than we did over the previous five years when we didn't have the program.”