A FAB TWO YEARS

Timeline: Samsung completes second year with Taylor

HUNTER DWORACZYK

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Thanksgiving Day served as an anniversary for Samsung Austin Semiconductor’s involvement with Taylor. The company is a local subsidiary of South Korean-based Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

Since Governor Greg Abbott made it official that Taylor would become the next site for its chipmaking plant Nov. 23, 2021, Samsung Austin Semiconductor has had some memorable moments.

■ SAMSUNG CHOOSES TAYLOR - NOV. 23, 2021

The Taylor and Samsung partnership was the talk of the Governor’s Mansion in Austin. The company said it planned to invest $17 billion and build a six-millionsquare- foot semiconductor manufacturing plant that was expected to create 2,585 new jobs. The city of Taylor, Taylor Independent School District and Williamson County previously approved tax abatements and incentives for the company. The agreement also required Samsung to provide paid internships for 24 Taylor High School students or recent graduates.

■ CITY EXPANDS ETJ - DEC. 9, 2021

Taylor City Council introduced and approved an ordinance to expand the extraterritorial jurisdiction through a voluntary request of the owner. The expansion included parcels of land southwest of the intersection of County Road 404 and Farm to Market 973. The ordinance was the first step for the city to be able to annex land purchased by Samsung.

■ INTERNS BEGIN FIRST DAY - JUNE 13, 2022

The first class of Samsung interns from Taylor High School started their internship. The interns work 40 hours a week for 10 weeks in the summer. They worked in different departments at the Austin campus, including communications and engineering.

■ EXPANSION PLANS MADE PUBLIC - JULY 20, 2022

State records made public showed Samsung wanted to add nine more fabrication plants at its Taylor site, creating up to 10,000 jobs and a nearly $185 billion investment in the region. Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts showed Samsung submitted Chapter 313 applications for appraised taxvalue limitations for the nine additional fabrication plants.

■ SAMSUNG DONATES $250,000 FOUR TIMES AUG. 19, 2022 Samsung announced a donation that totaled $1 million, which were spread among four Taylor-based organizations. Donations were made to Bluebonnet Trails of Williamson County, the Boys and Girls Club of East Williamson County, Shepherd’s Heart Food Pantry & Community Ministry and the Taylor Independent School District.

■ HIGHWAY NAMED AFTER SAMSUNG - DEC. 20, 2022

Williamson County Com-missioners named a stretch of road just south of the semiconductor fab site between County Road 404 and Farm to Market 973 “Samsung Highway.” The court approved $11.3 million for the project, which would be completed in segments.

■ LEGISLATIVE ETJ BILL GOES INTO LAW - SEPT. 1, 2023 Senate Bill 2038, which was passed by the Texas House and Senate in May 2023, allows residents in an ETJ to leave the city’s authority by the way of a petition or election. The law also limits a city’s ETJ to naturally expand as it annexes more territories.

■ SEGMENT 1 OF HIGHWAY OPEN - OCT. 16, 2023 Precinct 4 Commissioner Russ Boles announced Segment 1 of Samsung Highway was open. This segment is one half of a project that will construct a fourlane road designed to reduce curves on CR 404 and increase safety. Segment 2 is set to open next summer.

■ SAMSUNG DONATES $1 MILLION TO SCHOOL - NOV. 14, 2023 Samsung announced a $1 million investment in the school district’s career and technical education program during the groundbreaking ceremony for Taylor High School’s new CTE building. According to officials, the money will fund equipment for advanced manufacturing programs of study, which includes industrial systems, precision machining, automation and robotics and welding.