By Nick Goodrich

At their meeting on Tuesday, September 27th, the Antioch City Council voted 5-0 to approve a sales tax sharing agreement with OneSource Supply Solutions, a company that has provided PG&E with equipment for the past few years.

OneSource, a supply chain solution company based in Oceanside, has been working with the city to move one of its main locations from San Leandro to Antioch. OneSource’s Senior VP of Operations, John Mayberry, told the council that the proposed Antioch location will offer much more in the way of efficiency and business opportunity for the company.

For Antioch’s part, the move would represent a $2 million increase in sales tax revenue per year for the city, due to OneSource’s $200 million per year equipment deal with PG&E. The agreement calls for the City to retain the first $500,000 of sales tax, which would not be shared with OneSource. After that, all sales tax for the duration of the five-year agreement would include a 50% rebate to the company, with the City retaining the other half, resulting in a projected $1.25 million per year.

“This agreement does not include Measure C funds,” City Manager Steve Duran was quick to point out. “That would remain separate, and distinct.”

This should be good news to the group of citizens, headed by former Measure C Citizens Oversight Committee member Sal Sbrante, who have complained in recent months about a misuse of Measure C funds.

The agreement was the result of a couple months of work with OneSource by the City’s Economic Development Analyst Lizeht Zepeda, Finance Director Dawn Merchant and Duran.

Historically, Antioch has had successful sales tax agreements with businesses, notably with Costco and the Auto Center. The agreements are typically drawn up with major companies which have the potential to bring in large sales tax increases. OneSource represented such an opportunity.

One concern that several council members shared, including Mayor Wade Harper, was the absence of a local hire contract. The Council has pushed hard for such agreements, especially with major developers as they prepare for the construction of new subdivisions in the city. The Laurel Ranch subdivision project is the most recent to employ a local hire agreement, which will bring in labor from Antioch and the surrounding area, rather than workers commuting in.

Mayberry was reluctant to commit outright to a local hire contract, but did not rule out hiring from within the city.

“Frankly, we’re looking to hire the best people we can get, and if they’re here in Antioch, that’d be wonderful,” he told the Council.

Mayberry also noted that the extra $2 million in sales tax revenue would grow as OneSource continued to operate in Antioch and bring in more business, presenting an opportunity for the deal to benefit the city even more in the long run.

Ultimately, Ogorchock asked OneSource to consider a 50% local hire commitment, but told Mayberry, “I’m excited about the program you’re bringing to our community. I think it’s a win-win.”

This entry was posted on Monday, October 3rd, 2016 at 7:51 pm and is filed under Business, News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.