HOUGHTON – The MTEC SmartZone received a 15-year tax increment financing and development plan extension covering 2018-19 to 2032-33 at a Monday public hearing and joint council meeting of the cities of Hancock and Houghton.

Both councils voted unanimously to adopt the resolution.

“Our funding is really reimbursed by the state of Michigan,” SmartZone CEO Marilyn Clark said. “The way that funding is determined is on the school tax and property tax values. Anything that increases in property tax value, you get that increase. The first SmartZone application was 50 percent of that increase. By the end of our first 15 years, about 2017-2018, we anticipate that our budget will be about $1 million per year.”

When the business plan was originally written, Clark said, the SmartZone was required to commit to a number of targets. Among them was the goal of creating five new high tech jobs per year. In 2014, 22 jobs were created and last year, 10 jobs were created, double the goal originally set.

“Then you have make a commitment of how many new jobs you’re going to create,” Clark said. “If somebody works with a SmartZone, they are required to report to us metrics over five years. Over the five years as they’re reporting, those jobs get recorded, and we think 37 jobs is a pretty good number. In 2014 when we started Green Forces, a coalition of companies that work together, we created 86 (jobs). It’s very doable.”

Of the 16 SmartZones in Michigan, Clark said this one is one of the top three in the state.

“That really says a lot about the talent we have coming from Michigan Tech and in some way or another, we are all associated with Michigan Tech in terms of finding talent.”