High-tech firm revealed, confirms moving headquarters to PSL

By ROBERT BARBA
St. Lucie County has lured Carling Technologies, a global leader in circuit breakers and electric switches, a move that will bring higher-paying jobs and more high-tech visibility to the Treasure Coast.

The Connecticut-based company will move its corporate headquarters and research and development arm to the north end of Tradition in Port St. Lucie in July 2008.

"It's official," Ed Rosenthal, executive vice president and corporate counsel of Carling, said from the company's headquarters in Plainville. "We have to stay flexible and we think we can do that down there."

Carling's recruitment is part of a local effort to shift the economy from one reliant on agriculture and call centers to one rich in research and development.

Although they may have little in common, Carling could be a neighbor to Burnham Institute if the California-based biotechnology research institute opens a satellite campus in Tradition.
Local and state officials are recruiting Burnham to the state and an announcement could come in the next few months.

Carling will employ 150 people earning an average hourly wage of $26.60, according to the county's incentive package. That translates to about $55,000 annually.

COULD DRAW OTHERS
The company's relocation will entice other companies to the area, said Port St. Lucie city council members.

"We have a clean slate out west (along the I-95 corridor), and we have more to offer people than quarter-acre lots and strip malls," said councilman Christopher Cooper.
"You could have 10-story buildings out there. The goal is to have a corporate presence along I-95."

Port St. Lucie City Council is planning a special meeting today to consider a five-year tax-savings package for Carling. The city's incentives could be worth $350,000 to $450,000 in total, said city manager Don Cooper said. Those figures are based on estimates of building costs of about $15 million.

The exact amount will depend on the final cost of the building, he said.
Government and business development and leaders had kept the company's identity secret, calling it "Project I" in public documents. Negotiations with a Northeast-based tech firm were first disclosed in September by Tradition executives when the city approved The Landing's site plan.

Earlier this week, county commissioners approved a $1 million incentive for the company. The package includes a $255,000 Job Growth Investment grant that will pay $1,700 per job created and property tax exemption valued at $850,000 that will be spread out over nine years.

A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT
The relocation was a collaboration among city and county officials, Core Communities, the Economic Development Council of St. Lucie County and Chris Klein, president and broker of Treasure Coast Commercial Real Estate Inc.

Klein's firm is brokering the 5.5-acre parcel where Carling plans to build. The new home will sit just north of The Landing, Tradition's big-box retail center. That deal is expected to close in late June.

"This is one of the most exciting deals that I have ever worked on," Klein said.
Other members of the recruitment team declined to comment on Thursday's announcement.
Core Communities' president Pete Hegener has often spoken of creating a 5-mile job corridor along I-95.

Rosenthal said Carling is coming to Port St. Lucie because of the "changing climate of manufacturing" and the different types of technology that the company is developing.
In addition to the incentive package, the company was also impressed with the officials' enthusiasm, the Kight Center for Emerging Technologies at Indian River Community College and Florida Atlantic University.

LEAVING A VOID
Rosenthal said it was too early to tell how many people from Connecticut would move to Port St. Lucie. The company is excited to work with some members of the "new work force," he said.
Carling's exit from Plainville will hurt that city's economy. The company is the eighth largest employer, said Robert Lee, town manager. He was surprised at the departure, but because of the economics of the region the announcement wasn't unexpected.

"Given the economy and amount of companies moving from the north to the south, for various economic reasons, it's not surprising," Lee said.

"What's surprising is that it's happening in Plainville. It's hitting a little closer to home."
Carling chief operating officer Mike Bhojwani broke the news to the 160 Connecticut employees at 3 p.m. Thursday, Rosenthal said. Some tooling and press-related work will remain in Plainville.

The move will not affect Carling's wide-flung operations. About 2,600 employees are spread among offices in England, France, Germany, Hong Kong and Japan. In November, the company opened a 250,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in ZhongShan, China, Rosenthal said.