Before Mayor Carlo DeMaria Jr. called for a special joint Common Council and Board of Aldermen meeting Monday night, he met with L. Knife and Son, Inc. and Affiliates, a fourth-generation, family-owned distributor of specialty and imported craft beers.
The company is looking to expand its operation in Massachusetts and has found an ideal property located at 201 Beacham Street. For the past several months, L. Knife has shown interest in opening in Everett because of the city’s close proximity to Boston and major highways.
DeMaria is onboard with the plan to bring them to Everett, and after last night’s meeting where the plan was voted on and approved, it’s time to say welcome to the neighborhood. Cheers. The agreement between L. Knife and Son, Inc. and Affiliates and the city of Everett contains a four-year Special Tax Assessment (STA) plan.
An STA is an economic development tool to assist with business expansion and job growth under the Commonwealth’s Economic Development Incentive Program. The tax incentives provided under this program would embolden the company to invest and grow in the city of Everett.
The STA will apply an exemption from taxation on the full assessed value of the property with the following exemption rates: 100 percent in the first year, 75 percent in the second year, 50 percent in the third year and 25 percent in the fourth and final year. The projected annual average tax relief through the STA is $382,183.
L. Knife proposed to invest $13.4 million into the community including the purchase and renovation of a 222,000 square foot vacant industrial facility to use as corporate offices, a new training facility and a temperature controlled distribution center. The company currently distributes its craft brews to local liquor stores, restaurants and hotels.
It is estimated that L. Knife will bring over 80 jobs to Everett from other facilities and will create 20 new jobs at the Beacham facility. The jobs will include positions in sales, accounting, customer service, information technology, and shipping and receiving, and will be given preferentially to Everett residents.
“I am very excited to see a company as high caliber as L. Knife come to the city of Everett,” said Mayor Carlo DeMaria. “There will first be new jobs for the community because of the construction and then permanent new jobs when the business opens. I am committed to finding Everett people jobs and am eager to join forces with L. Knife to accomplish this goal…This is a major step forward for our city and a good start to inviting new business and growth into Everett.”
As part of the agreement, L. Knife will also support Everett’s MassWorks application, for a $3 million rehabilitation and reconstruction of Beacham Street, spanning from Broadway to the Chelsea Line. With this new endeavor, Everett will benefit from the promise of new jobs, permit fees, vehicle excise tax, and personal property taxes. The council and Board of Aldermen were behind the mayor’s decision to continue bettering the community and trying to do what is best for the city’s taxpayers.