Site Selection
Osceola County has several business industrial parks both public and private. In addition, there are several excellent manufacturing facilities currently affordable and available. We will also build to suit in order to accommodate the needs of prospects. Take a look at our available buildings and sites on the LOIS interactive property database.
- Available Buildings
- Available Sites
- To do a parcel search on the Osceola County Beacon, click here.
State and Local Incentives
Osceola County can offer a number of incentives to business prospects. Any incentives granted are based on expected investment in a project; number of jobs created and expected annual payroll and all assistance is subject to approval by governing bodies representing these programs.
Popular incentive options available to businesses wishing to make Osceola County their home include:
- High Quality Jobs
- New Jobs Tax Credit
- Targeted Jobs Withholding Tax Credit
- Iowa Jobs Training Program and Iowa Industrial New Jobs Training - Click here to view additional information from Northwest Community College, who administer the programs locally.
- Tax Increment Financing
- Low-interest loans from local revolving loan funds
Other factors that make Iowa very attractive to businesses are:
- Iowa Is a Right To Work State
- Iowa Corporate Income Tax
- Unemployment Insurance Rate
- Work Opportunity Tax Credit
- No Personal Property Tax
- No Sales and Use Tax On Manufacturing Machinery and Equipment Purchases
- Research Activities Tax Credit
For more information, visit the Iowa Economic Development Authority's Business Development Program page here.
Utilities
Osceola County has very competitive/affordable energy rates and availability.
Utility suppliers:
- Osceola Electric Cooperative serves members in Dickinson, Lyon, O'Brien and Osceola counties, but a majority are located in Osceola County. OEC's Sterler Community Solar Park is located north of Sibley, and output is available for purchase. (712) 754-2519.
- Osceola County Rural Water System: (712) 735-6795
- Alliant Energy: 1 (800) 255-4268 - click here for more information on Alliant Energy's flexible solutions to industrial businesses. These could include: Combined Heat & Power (CHP), Solar arrays, Steam, Micro grids, Battery storage, Green RECs, Energy management solutions, Energy efficiency programs, Customizable rate program
- City of Sibley: (712) 754-2541
Internet:
In 2018, Premier Communications finished rebuilding the greater Sibley area's fiber optic network. The $8 million investment meant all of the company’s facilities within the community and rural area were upgraded with a fiber optic connection to every farm, home and business. Premier put in 138.43 miles of mainline fiber and 51.07 miles of service fiber to 1655 locations.
With the improved infrastructure, the Sibley area is now among a handful of rural communities in Iowa that can boast having “fiber to the home.” The new fiber connections gives access to Premier Communication’s latest products and services along with Internet speeds of up to 1 GB/second. New services available included digital voice and IP video services, and the new fiber allowed Premier to deliver the most reliable and fastest internet available.
Website: mypremieronline.com
Call: 800.741.8351
Foreign Trade Zone
Northwest Iowa Development is the Grantee for Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) #288. Its Grantee operating authority was received in 2013. Doing business within FTZ 288 can offer your company the benefit of deferring, delaying, or eliminating import duty. If your company imports dutiable products or materials, we encourage you to consider the benefits of doing business within FTZ 288. The six counties included in FTZ 288 are Cherokee, Lyon, O’Brien, Osceola, Plymouth, and Sioux.
What is a Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ)?
A foreign-trade zone is a defined physical area within the United States that, for customs entry purposes, and is treated as if it is outside U.S. borders. Companies may use FTZs for both storage/distribution activities and, after specific authorization by the U.S. Foreign Trade Zone Board, for production.
The U.S. currently has over 700 active zones and subzones throughout the 50 states and Puerto Rico. Approximately 11% of U.S. imports and 6.7% of U.S. exports move through Foreign Trade Zones.
Why use a Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ)?
- Eliminate duties or quota charges on re-exports:
- Goods imported into the zone may be exported from the zone duty free
- Rates of duty and tax on the merchandise admitted to a zone may change because of operations conducted within the zone
- Defer customs duties and federal excise taxes until the product leaves the zone
- Merchandise may remain in a zone indefinitely, whether or not subject to duty
- Merchandise is not subject to U.S. duty or excise tax. while in the zone
- Duty and federal excise tax, if applicable, are paid when the merchandise is transferred out of the zone for consumption
- Harbor Maintenance Fees paid quarterly
- Exempt foreign goods and domestic goods from state and local inventory taxes
- Eliminate time and expense of filing multiple duty drawback claims. And may lower costs from more efficient customs processing
- Other advantages, such as – merchandise clearing customs at your location, fewer entry filings which may result in a reduction of broker fees. In addition, merchandise may be admitted into a zone to satisfy any exportation requirement of the Tariff Act of 1930, or an exportation requirement of any other Federal law
How do we create a Foreign Trade Zone for our products?
Northwest Iowa Development FTZ 288 can assist you with your first steps in reviewing your needs. Importing companies should begin by evaluating their need, for example, how much do I import and from what countries. What cost savings might I expect? For example, how many import entries am I making a month, what is my Harbor Maintenance fee? What are my Duty Drawback returns/fees, etc. as well as cost to set up bookkeeping & inventory control? And what and import duty is currently being paid?
How Can NWID Help You?
Northwest Iowa Development is here to help answer your FTZ questions and assist you in navigating and expediting the application process. And If your company is not within the NWID FTZ 288 six county area, we will discuss the benefits of Sub-Zone status under FTZ 288 and the process for approval.
To learn more about FTZ 288, and how it may benefit your company, please contact:
Kathy Hill, Consultant to Northwest Iowa Development, khill7209@gmail.com or M/T 515-229-5712
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