By: Diane Benjamin
I FOIA’d the Town of Normal concerning permits issued to Rivian from the Town of Normal. This list is just in the last 6 months. Total construction value is over $107 million during that time period.
Rivian received taxpayer dollars yet all this construction is not required to pay prevailing wage. Rivian will gladly take your money and then bring in cheaper labor to do the construction. If they weren’t getting tax dollars it wouldn’t matter, language protecting workers Normal put in agreements is not enforceable.
Rivian is also bringing in foreign nationals on VISAs. I have emails confirming this that I may use in the future. President Trump may by ending that practice for us. He signed an Executive Order in June limiting VISA’s for temporary workers: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/06/22/visas-trump-signed-executive-order-limit-h-1-b-l-1-and-others/3230698001/
See these stories about incentives:
It’s rewarding to see construction spending of this magnitude in Normal again and I wish Rivian continued success as production of these vehicles begins next year.
Rivian continues to attract private investment capital…
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/10/rivian-ceo-scaringes-aggressive-plan-to-beat-tesla-and-nikola-with-the-first-all-electric-pickup-and-suv.html
Ron: Care to bet how long it lasts or what annual sales will be once the novelty wears off or competition increases? Clark Kent has no loyalty to any community he has ever been in. There lifespan here will be many years less than Mitsubishi. Building a niche vehicle that depends on a very small market is risky business. Get back to me in say five years after they actually roll off a product and we can talk then.
Pea: Not interested in betting or talking with you now or later. Only rooting for a private business investment in Normal. Yes, a vacant decaying factory in Illinois has a very long lifespan. And no, I’m not a green-new-deal fanatic. Just hoping that, by sheer dumb luck, Koos and his free-spending corrupt regime might somehow have gotten one right here.
@Burgundy. I applaud your attempt to dream and be positive. However, I am not it’s Mr Peabody. Besides, you know what they say about dreamers…they usually spend way to much time fantasizing and Rubin night around trying to make things magically appear that they end up providing no real value for themselves or anyone else. Done talking ! I want to see real results that are based on some good sound critical thinking and analysis! I’m tired of my tax dollars being spent on others pipe dreams! Sorry if you are offended but I’m someone who knows how to twist the Rubix cube
You have a business that is hiring probably 500, if not 1,000 or more manufacturing jobs. Even if 10% of this investment makes its way here through construction, taxes paid, and especially wages, that’s $250 million into the economy here.
I may have been skeptical at the start, but I love that we have a decaying property being built up. Even if it lasts 10-20 years, that is still better than sitting empty with nothing.
One thing to think of: Amazon and T Rowe Price aren’t throwing $5 billion into this without seeing what they have and what it can do.
Koos can pretend this is his legacy, as long as we get him out of office.
koos “legacy” has ALREADY been made. it’s a $100 million debt for uptown!
Koos did not bring Rivian here. The old plant brought Rivian here. Koos and Reece need to deflate their egos.