For nearly a century, the Oscar Mayer plant defined North Madison. When it closed in 2017, it left behind an empty 200,000 square foot campus and questions about what comes next for this space. I am excited to have played even a small part in what might come next: An effort at all levels of government, from Governor Evers to the Dane County Board to the Madison Common Council, to attract tech businesses like Realta Fusion (a Madison-born company that grew out of research at UW-Madison) into the space.
While UW-Madison is a world-class university, many of the folks it educates go on to careers in Boston, Paris, or elsewhere. Thanks to state tax incentives, a pending TIF district, and a pending relationship with the Dane County Regional Airport to ship needed and costly materials from all over the world, that brainpower might remain right here in Dane County. If they make the final decision to move into the former Oscar Mayer building, Realta envisions investing at least $200 million over the next two years, with the full build-out eventually topping $500 million, and growing from roughly 40 employees today to 200 or more by 2030. It is our hope and vision that attracting such an anchor to the space will pave the way for other high-tech businesses on the campus.
It is undeniable that the U.S. economy has changed dramatically since the days when manufacturing jobs dominated the north side. It is my sincere hope that this effort shapes the century that comes next.
