County council approves incentive for Sustenia project on second reading

Tippecanoe County Council approved Ordinance 2026-13-CL on second and final reading on June 9, authorizing the use of tax-increment (TIF) proceeds to support an economic development revenue note for the Sustenia project.

County staff described the Sustenia project as an estimated $300 million private investment that would trigger an incentive structured as a forgivable note if the developer completes the project and meets specified job-creation benchmarks. A staff speaker said the approval ties forgiveness of the note to project completion and creation of a stated number of jobs (staff referenced roughly 180 positions at $40-plus per hour). The county’s commitment was described in discussion as capped at $500,000; the city of Lafayette is contributing a larger amount under a parallel agreement.

The council held a roll-call vote after brief discussion by staff. Councilors voted in favor: Richard, Murray, Dolan, Carson, Basham and Vernon. The ordinance passed 6–0 on second and final reading.

Why it matters: The ordinance authorizes local support that officials say is intended to catalyze a major private investment and secure local jobs. The incentive is performance-based — county officials said the note is forgivable only upon completion of the project and verified job creation — and uses TIF or related economic-development revenues rather than general-fund dollars.

What’s next: Council action on second reading completes the county’s local approval. Implementation details — including the exact target job numbers, verification process, and timeline for any payments or forgiveness — were discussed in general terms during the meeting but were not enumerated in full in the public remarks. Staff indicated prior approval steps by other jurisdictions and that the economic-development agreement includes conditions that must be met before any forgiveness occurs.