City of Beatrice rezones new 80-acre industrial tract

BEATRICE – The City of Beatrice has rezoned property that will be added to the Gage County Industrial Park. The city council Tuesday night approved rezoning 80 acres of land purchased the past year from a local farm family.
"You've got Southwest 32nd Street on the west side....Ridgeview Drive on the east side of the property and Sargent Road on the south side of the property".
City Administrator Tobias Tempelmeyer says the property will be proposed for annexation as early as later this month. Following a public hearing, the council changed the zoning on the land from agricultural to general industrial. There’s no specific plan for the property, yet.
"We've re-platted the other parcels out there and every time we have a new business come in, we end up redrawing the property lines anyhow, to fit whatever that particular company wants. So, we didn't see a lot of need to go out and have it platted at this point, so we're going to start with the rezoning of it,", Tempelmeyer said.
City officials also approved an electric service agreement with Radiant Tech LLC….a development slightly farther south in the Industrial Park which will be a large user of electric power.
The agreement includes a monthly energy charge and amounts based on usage…which the city can interrupt, if needed. The company is breaking ground on a facility at Industrial Row and Centennial Drive on two-and-a-half acres of property. The New York-based firm will be operating large computer servers….one of several sites it plans to develop. A company official said the firm expects to employ five people. locally.
On the commercial side, the city council approved a plan modification for a future development at Sixth and Monroe, where a four-thousand square foot retail facility will be built. The project, seeking tax increment financing…will have an estimated valuation of just under one-million dollars when finished and would be the site of a Jimmy John’s Restaurant.