Smith County Gets Jobs Grant

TYLER — Smith County Judge Joel Baker announced Wednesday that Smith County has been awarded $368,600 in grant funds for sanitary sewer improvements to support job creation by Distant Lands Coffee Company. The grant, made from the Texas Capital Fund Infrastructure Program, is administered by the Texas Department of Agriculture, and consists of federal funds from the HUD Community Development Block Grant Program. The grant-funded improvements will be coordinated with the City of Tyler, enabling the Company to obtain sewer service, and re-purpose land for future expansion that is currently used by its septic system and drain field.

Distant Lands Coffee Company operates a roasting facility at 11754 State Highway 64 West near Tyler, but outside Tyler’s corporate limits. The company currently employs 56 persons in Smith County. Distant Lands is the only vertically integrated coffee company. Founded in 1982, Distant Lands’ operating divisions now include coffee farms, processing mills, multi-national quality control services, green coffee trading, and North American roasting plants. The company supplies approximately one-third of the coffee brewed at McDonald’s worldwide, as well as other chains, including Panera Bread.

Baker says the sponsorship of this project by Smith County and the cooperation of all parties, including the City of Tyler and the Tyler Economic Development Council, has contributed to the success of this grant application. As a result of the grant, the following benefits are projected:
� Will leverage an additional $368,600 in working capital investment by the company
� Will create 19 additional permanent full-time manufacturing jobs
� Will provide and additional annual payroll of $381,680 dollars.
� At least 51% of the new jobs will be filled by low and moderate-income persons.
� Construction of approx. 3,990 LF of new sanitary sewer main from the company’s plant to a nearby City of Tyler sewer interceptor.

The project will be located in Precinct 1 of Smith County. Smith County is thanking the Texas Department of Agriculture and especially Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples for making the grant possible. The team of Traylor & Associates; Rea Boudreaux, P.E.; and the Brannon Corporation worked together in preparing the grant application, cost estimates, and site plans for the project. This is the third Texas Capital Fund grant successfully sought by Smith County since 2000.