Morton Buildings lease approved for Pocatello Airport property

A building manufacturing facility is scheduled to land soon at Pocatello Airport’s industrial park. The Pocatello City Council approved a 30-year lease Aug. 5 for the Morton Buildings of Morton, Illinois, on 35 acres at the airport industrial park, with right of first refusal on an additional 15 acres.

Morton is a leading manufacturer and builder of post-frame structures for multiple uses, ranging from commercial to residential. The manufacturing plant will be Morton’s seventh. The firm already has sales offices in Idaho Falls and Nampa, which are the furthest west of Morton’s over 100 locations. Recent Morton projects in Idaho include the new 15,000-square-foot Gooding Fire Department, dedicated in November 2020.

John Russell, CEO and chairman of the board for Morton, said in a recent statement: “Our recent growth in the Northwest has positioned us to make this significant investment in Pocatello, and we are grateful for the reception we have received by the local community. After working with Bannock Development Corporation over the past months, we are confident that Pocatello provides a terrific base from which to serve the Northwest.”

MiaCate Kennedy, CEO of the Bannock Development Corporation, described for the Pocatello City Council her experience in working with Morton to find them a home in the Pocatello area: “I’ve followed Morton Buildings since I started (at the Bannock Development Corp.), probably from my first week. I got to know them fairly well and looked at numerous properties with them. They wanted to purchase at first but determined that leasing would be an alternative for them…This just seemed like it would be a good option, as far as the property goes.

“They are a long-standing 100-year-old company, employee owned, with great C-suite. They really want to be involved in the community just as much as they want to bring jobs here. So I know pretty much everything about them, inside out. I’ve stayed in contact with them every single day since I started…I’m excited to have them.”

Though all the details have not yet been finalized, Kennedy believes that Morton will bring approximately 25 jobs to the area, paying a competitive wage with a full benefits package. She added: “They look out for their employees. They don’t have very many people leave.”

The terms of the lease include two 30-year renewals. The lease rate will be $15,750 annually with a 100% increase in year six, a 50% increase in year 11, and a 12.9% increase in year 16. Rates for two additional 30-year extensions will be negotiated at the time of renewal. During the council discussion of the motion to approve the lease, Alan Evans, manager of the airport, acknowledged that the lease terms were below the current market rate for the area.

Evans explained to the city council that the rate was based on a 2016 appraisal that had Federal Aviation Administration (FFFA) approval: “The way this rate came about, a little over a year ago when Morton approached us, it was based on a current appraisal that we are using at this point. That appraisal has been reviewed and approved by the FAA. We are obligated…by the FAA to get fair market value for our properties out there, where at least we need to get a certain amount of return…It’s kind of a different way to do things; but that is how (the rate) was put in place. We are under obligation to make sure that we are within those bounds so that our (FAA) grant assurances are not in jeopardy.”

Evans said that the airport has since received a more recent appraisal but that it has not been reviewed or approved by the FAA yet. Until that happens, the airport must continue to use the 2016 appraisal. Evans also pointed out reviewing and approving new appraisals was not high on the FAA’s priority list, so it could take a while to replace the 2016 appraisal. With all its questions answered, the city council voted to approve the lease terms negotiated last year, as the 16th of 18 agenda items, including more than an hour of public hearings on the city’s 2022 budget.