Parkland School Board members expressed deep skepticism about a proposed tax break for Eli Lilly, using their Tuesday workshop meeting to voice concerns that the district cannot afford to forego tax revenue from the pharmaceutical manufacturer\u2019s proposed Upper Macungie plant.<\/p>\n
Opposition was not universal, but the majority of board members said the district is facing economic headwinds that make it difficult to agree to a proposed 10-year contract that would see the district give up millions in revenue.<\/p>\n
At issue is a proposed Local Economic Revitalization Tax Assistance program. Known as LERTA, the state program<\/a> aims to spur development in \u201cdeteriorated areas\u201d and permits township, county and school district officials to authorize tax breaks that allow land owners to delay full payment on the value of construction.<\/p>\n The most up-to-date projections of what the proposed LERTA would mean for the Parkland School District<\/a> range widely depending on the final assessed value of Lilly\u2019s proposed $3.5 billion plant<\/a>.<\/p>\n It is the township\u2019s responsibility to set the boundaries of a LERTA district. Upper Macungie has done so, and the presentation Superintendent Mark Madson delivered Tuesday says the properties inside that district, which is located on Main Street, generated $183,547 in school district tax revenue in 2025.<\/p>\n Business incentives versus tax revenue<\/p>\n Determining the long-term impact of Lilly\u2019s investment on the Parkland School District means both calculating how much tax Lilly would owe to the district and estimating the larger spillover effects of economic growth the pharmaceutical plant could spur.<\/p>\n To estimate how much money Lilly might provide to the Parkland School District over the 10 years of the proposed LERTA, which would begin in 2028 when project developers hope construction will be completed, the Lehigh County Office of Tax Assessment provided two scenarios:<\/p>\n The \u201clow assessed value\u201d scenario values the completed Lilly plant at $68 million. In that scenario, the proposed 10-year tax abatement would mean the school district gains $7.3 million and forgoes $8 million in tax revenue over the life of the agreement.<\/p>\n The \u201chigh assessed value\u201d scenario values the completed Lilly plant at $105 million, and means the district would gain $11.3 million in tax revenue and forego nearly $12.5 million.<\/p>\n Representatives from the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corp. told school board members that it is difficult to find comparable projects that would make it easy to estimate how the completed Lilly project will be assessed and what its full value will be.<\/p>\n Tuesday\u2019s workshop discussion kicked off with a LVEDC video<\/a> that featured organizations and companies involved in bringing Eli Lilly to the Lehigh Valley. The slides Madson then presented<\/a> called the project \u201ca historic anchor for Upper Macungie Township\u201d and highlighted how the 925,000-square-foot manufacturing campus could impact the community.<\/p>\n The presentation also noted the $100 million in state incentives that are attached to the project, the governor\u2019s support and the \u201c300 competing locations\u201d for the proposed Lilly plant.<\/p>\n But the presentation did not sway everyone.<\/p>\n School board member Jon Macklin called the video a \u201csizzle reel,\u201d noting its format seemed drawn from advertising promotion strategies. He said he is \u201cincredibly happy Lilly is coming here\u201d but feels the proposed LERTA is a \u201cmassive financial loss for the Parkland School District.\u201d<\/p>\n Calling the tax abatement proposal \u201ckind of one-sided,\u201d he said it \u201cfeels like Parkland is giving a lot more than it seems to be receiving\u201d and asked whether or not the company has made any concrete commitments to the school district.<\/p>\n Opportunities for students<\/p>\n Madson told The Morning Call that the district has been in conversation with Lilly representatives but that their conversations have been \u201chigher level\u201d and have not yet included any details for how the company might form a partnership with the district.<\/p>\n As part of the incentive package to attract Lilly, Lehigh Carbon Community College is set to receive a $5 million state grant to upgrade its science labs and create training programs<\/a> designed to prepare students for the estimated 850 permanent jobs the Lilly plant will bring. Company officials have said those jobs will have an average salary of $100,000.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to make sure that our students at Parkland are really positioned well to enter into those types of jobs as well,\u201d Madson said.<\/p>\n It remains to be determined exactly how Parkland schools will be able to partner with LCCC, as well as other potential partners like the Lehigh Career & Technical Institute, to help develop programs at the high school and build an effective career development pathway for biomedical pharmaceutical manufacturing jobs, Madson said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe majority of the people working at this facility will come from the Lehigh Valley, and, moreover, many of them right from our Parkland community,\u201d Madson said. \u201cSo we want to make sure that we\u2019re going to have programs that are developed strategically to align with that.\u201d<\/p>\n Redesigning curriculum and building higher ed partnerships is \u201cnot an overnight changeover,\u201d and Madson said Lilly could be a key partner in making those connections happen, adding, \u201cI think they\u2019re going to need to help us through some of that.\u201d<\/p>\n Madson also pointed out that the district aims to prepare students not just for jobs at the Lilly plant but for jobs at other surrounding businesses that are going to be hiring as the area grows in response to Lilly\u2019s investment and in continuation of current population trends that have seen Parkland\u2019s enrollment increase.<\/p>\n School budget crunch<\/p>\n Projections of a long-term population boom in Upper Macungie<\/a> have some Parkland School Board members looking toward the future with a wary eye.<\/p>\n Board member Carol Facchiano said continued enrollment growth could mean the district will need another elementary school or might struggle to adequately staff its buildings as enrollment increases.<\/p>\n \u201cIt all is really coming down to money,\u201d Facchiano said, acknowledging the district\u2019s current budget deficit and adding that she needs to hear more from next month\u2019s budget discussions to determine the feasibility of the LERTA.<\/p>\n Projections from the March budget workshop<\/a> included a need to cut expenses to close a $17.1 million deficit. Those projections noted that a proposed 3.5% increase in the local millage rate for property taxes would bring that deficit down to just under $11.3 million.<\/p>\n