After years of working toward bringing more industry to Seward, the Seward Regional Rail Campus south of town will soon welcome a new manufacturer.
Scoular, an Omaha-based grain company, will occupy roughly half the acres that have been for sale at the Rail Campus. It will invest $50 million in a building and equipment and is expected to create 100 new jobs.
The Seward City Council approved the sale of 15 acres to Scoular at its March 19 meeting.
The Rail Campus is south of Walker Road near Tenneco. It was zoned for industrial development because of its proximity to the railroad.
“They’re going to be the flagship company at the rail campus,” Seward Mayor Josh Eickmeier said.
Scoular will manufacture freeze-dried protein ingredients for pet food; however, the company itself does not make pet food—it just sells the ingredients.
“There’s no kill floor. The meat comes in already packed,” Eickmeier said.
Scoular Director Amy Patterson said the company uses state-of-the-art technology to create a product that will meet “an unmet need in the marketplace.”
“It will create freeze-dried protein ingredients to sell to pet food brands to incorporate into their products. It becomes a way to add protein to the animal’s diet,” Patterson said.
“We’re using frozen proteins; they’re already coming in processed, so there will be no live animals. It’s not a rendering facility,” she added.
Scoular is a 126-year-old company with 16 locations in Nebraska, 23 offices and 79 storage, handling and processing facilities across North America, South America and Asia.
Its roots are in the agricultural industry, specifically with grain processing.
“We’re really excited about bringing our company to the Seward community, particularly,” Patterson said.
She said Scoular was impressed with the city’s site selection team and its interactions with the mayor’s office, Seward County Chamber and Development Partnership representatives and others.
She said here, the facility will be close to suppliers and customers to make and sell the company’s products.
“It’s nice to be able to continue to invest in Nebraska,” Patterson said.
Scoular had its first site visit in Seward about a year ago, but the company began studying sites and the product market even earlier.
“We wanted to be very thoughtful about that process,” Patterson said. “Choosing the home for this business was really exciting.”
Scoular expects to break ground on the project in June. Construction will take 14 to 16 months, with an anticipated opening date in the fall of 2020.
The land is already zoned for this type of use, but Eickmeier said the facility will be regulated by the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality.
The state departments of economic development, agriculture and transportation also have been involved, as well as the governor’s office.
“They’ve all been very involved and engaged. The governor was here for a site visit,” said Jessica Kolterman, a member of the SCCDP board who also is consulting with the city on the project.
Kolterman said Scoular occupying the Rail Campus will help the city pay for developing the area.
The council previously decided to spend money on developing roads and utility infrastructure on the Rail Campus with the hope of attracting light industrial and commercial occupants.
“This helps us to pay for that through their (Scoular’s) rates,” Kolterman said. “It will help with the capital expenses that were going to be built anyway. It’s not a taxpayer hit.”
Kolterman said the SCCDP has had five inquiries from potential businesses at the Rail Campus, with three of them being really serious.
“None have moved forward to the next phase,” she said.
The hope is that Scoular’s project will generate additional interest in the area.
“You need one big one, and then I think the rest follows,” Kolterman said.
Scoular will occupy the west half of the 30 acres.
“This will be on the back 15,” Eickmeier said. “The infrastructure will be built and will make it more enticing” for lodging places or restaurants on the front half.
Eickmeier said this type of manufacturing business—part of the food industry—is different from anything Seward already has, which could benefit the city’s economy.
“This will diversify the industry in Seward in case one type has a downturn,” he said. “The industry is something I think the community will be proud of.”
