The first phase of Foxconn Technology Group’s LCD campus in Mount Pleasant would include five buildings with a footprint of at least 500,000 square feet, including two that would exceed 1.5 million square feet, according to plans submitted to the village of Mount Pleasant.
Another five facilities in the second phase exceed 400,000 square feet, including one that tops 1.5 million
One of those two larger facilities in the first phase is an assembly operation planned along Highway H. That facility is a first priority for construction and the company hopes to have it done by the start of 2019, according to Claude Lois, Mount Pleasant project manager.
Foxconn is already leasing a nearly 156,000-square-foot facility at 13315 Globe Drive in Mount Pleasant. The company is using it to assemble televisions and also to experiment with advanced manufacturing techniques ahead of the completion of its main facility. Assembly work will shift over to the main campus once it is ready.
Bringing assembly work to the U.S. is a key early part of the Foxconn project. The company is projecting $233 million in revenue next year from assembly operations and $3.3 billion over the next three years, according to Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. documents. AFE Inc., the subsidiary responsible for TV assembly, is projected to account for about two-thirds of Foxconn’s hiring next year.
To earn the maximum number of its jobs tax credits from the state, Foxconn has to create 1,040 jobs by the end of next year and reach 2,080 by the end of 2019. To receive all $1.5 billion in jobs related credits, the company has to hit 13,000 jobs by the end of 2022.
The company’s capital expenditure plans call for $543 million in spending next year and another $2.76 billion in 2019, accounting for one-third of the entire five year timeline, according to WEDC documents.
The site plans submitted Friday to the village are not nearly as specific when it comes to timing. Beyond Lois telling reporters the assembly plant was a priority, the one page document only has references to a first and second phase. Under the terms of the developers agreement signed by the company and local officials, the company was required to submit initial plans by Friday.
The plans do clear up some confusion about just how big the Foxconn campus will be. The project was described as 20 million square feet of facilities during the initial White House announcement in July, but during a state contract signing in November, Foxconn officials said it would be 32 million square feet. That left some to believe the project had grown by more than 50 percent.
Credit: Curtis Waltz / www.aerialscapes.com
Under the plans submitted to the village, the campus would in fact be spread out over 32.7 million square feet or 751 acres, about 62 percent of the area set aside for Foxconn’s initial campus.
The total footprint of the buildings identified in the site plan amounts to 11.7 million square feet, but local officials say with additional floors the total area will equal 22 million square feet.
The first phase of construction would have a 7.7 million-square-foot footprint, assuming the assembly plant is 1.5 million square feet. The plans do not provide dimensions and Lois suggested it could grow larger.
Other features included in the site plans include a 130,781-square-foot footprint designated for lobby and office space just south of Braun Road and an equal space labeled as a cafeteria that would be attached to the offices.
In addition to thousands of square feet of surface lot parking, the plans also call for two parking structures that could hold 1,000 and 2,000 cars each.
A more than 461,000-square-foot space is designated for a glass plant. Local officials involved in the project have said Corning would establish a facility to produce glass in close proximity to Foxconn, but the company has not confirmed its plans.
Other projects in the first phase include a nearly 1.6 million-square-foot facility labeled as array and three other apparently production related facilities between 440,000 and 883,000 square feet. There are also spaces designated for water, 322,917 square feet; energy, 419,792 square feet; wastewater treatment, 688,890 square feet; and chemicals and gas, 193,750 square feet.
The second phase of production would have a 4 million-square-foot footprint, including another 1.6 million labeled as array along with additional buildings dedicated to production, water and energy.
