In January, Celadon announced plans to build a $5.7 million training facility.
“In return, the company [was] seeking a seven-year real property-tax abatement worth $205,494 and a personal property-tax abatement worth $7,000 from the city,” the Indiana Business Journal reported.
Today, Indiana Governor Mike Pence joined executives from Celadon Trucking Services, Inc., to announce that the company’s plan to build a driver training school in Indiana is moving forward.
The Indiana Economic Development Corporation offered Celadon up to $2.95 million in conditional tax credits and up to $200,000 in grants. The tax credits are performance-based. Celadon must hire Indiana residents in order to be eligible for the incentives.
The company plans to invest $5.7 million to build a 61,000 square-foot training facility at 9050 E. 33rd St. near its Indianapolis headquarters campus.
In addition to the driving school, the building will feature dorms, a cafeteria, workout room, basketball/racquet court, Wi-Fi and a driver training road course.
“Celadon’s commitment to Hoosiers reflects a growing confidence in the business climate in our state,” said Pence. “At the heart of the nation, our convenient location and expansive transportation infrastructure strengthen Indiana’s reputation as the ‘Crossroads of America.’ Combine this with our competitive tax climate and skilled workforce and, logistically speaking, Indiana works for business.”
Celadon began taking applications for the driving school in October. The program offers three to five-week training courses, with time spent both in the classroom and on the road.
“Driver recruitment and driver retention is a long term challenge within the industry,” said Paul Will, president and chief executive officer of Celadon. “We realize that establishing the Quality Drivers school and the Celadon training program are the next logical steps in ensuring that we have sufficient numbers of qualified drivers to fill our seats and meet our growth expectations. Logistically, locating the driver training school in Indiana is a sound business decision that provides access to the state’s vast resources, but it also gives Celadon another opportunity to give back to the state of Indiana by contributing significant jobs numbers right here in Indianapolis. We’re extremely happy and proud to continue our commitment to the local and state economies.”
The facility is expected to be complete by fall.