HUTTO – Although nobody is officially stating that the deal has been called off, Hutto has returned a $200,000 deposit on land that was being held for the future site of Applied Materials, a world-wide supplier to the semiconductor industry. The company has a manufacturing plant in Northeast Austin that employs an estimated 2,500 workers.
The city would not confirm the news to the Press, but economic development director Bob Farley told the Austin Business Journal the city was no longer earmarking the land for the tech giant. No reason was given for why they withdrew their interest, but Farley reportedly said talks with the company — code-named “Project Acropolis” in economic development discussions — are ongoing.
When the project was announced last year, Farley told City Council the $2.4 billion research and development facility could “easily double what we already have in terms of the tax base for Hutto.”
“That shifts some of the burden off residential and creates more opportunities to take that money and reinvest in areas like parks,” he said.
Construction on the Hutto site had been expected to begin this month, and would have lasted through 2026 creating 7,190 construction jobs according to statements Applied Materials provided to Hutto Independent School District’s board of trustees in 2022.
The news of the Hutto project stalling came out just before Applied Materials announced a 23.1% jump in their quarterly dividends, signifying that the company sees a strong future for the industry.
“The dividend increase, our largest in five years, and the new share repurchase authorization reflect our positive long-term view of the semiconductor market and our confidence in Applied’s out-sized growth opportunities driven by our technology leadership, broad portfolio of differentiated products and strong customer engagements,” Gary Dickerson, president and CEO said in a press release.
While this negotiation may have stalled, Hutto remains positive about its future as well.
“Their interest in Hutto may grow or fade due to factors having little to nothing to do with Hutto, but more a matter of the broader economy and market fluctuations. That doesn’t change the strong movement we have going,” said Farley.
“We are thrilled with the volume and quality of the prospects in serious talks with Hutto. We’re seeing twice the interest in Hutto as we did just a year ago, from dozens of prospective companies of all sizes,” he said.
