City Council approves tax incentives for proposed West side medical facility

Tenet, the owners of the Sierra Providence Health Network met with City Council Tuesday.

The company negotiated several items with city officials.

Tenet will have to invest $120 million on its West side hospital.

It will have to create 300 new jobs, and not siphon any positions away from other Sierra-Providence hospitals, if it does, then the incentives will be reduced. For each percentage point that Tenet falls below 100 percent, there will be a 20 percent reduction to the overall incentive. If Tenet drops to 95 percent of employment capacity, the development agreement is terminated.

The jobs would pay, on average $45,000, which is twice the median county wage. Salaries and benefits paid annually would be up to $21.5 million.

The hospital will allow 40 Texas Tech students to train at the hospital in the first year and 50 every year after that for the duration of the 15-year contract.

The tax and permit rebates would add up to $12.8 million over the next 15 years.

The city is expected to collect $6.1 million in property taxes over the next 15 years.

“There’s additional growth and additional benefit that’s not on the agreement from Texas Tech in terms of physicians being recruited to the hospital,” said Cary Weston, director of economic development.

The council approved the incentives 6 to 2. Dr. Mike Noe and Eddie Holguin abstained.

The hospital is expected to open in the fall of 2016.