From the 11/10/05 AP:
EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (AP) - Home improvement retailer Menard Inc. said Thursday it would add about 200 jobs in the Eau Claire area and build a new divisional headquarters after receiving a $4.2 million incentive package from the state.
The company has had a series of disputes with state environmental officials, and a disagreement about separate plans for a new distribution center has prompted the company to threaten to take the project elsewhere.
But company spokeswoman Dawn Sands said the new office building shows company owner John Menard's loyalty to his hometown, where the firm is based.
"He is recommitted to this community," she said. "He could've easily moved this thing anywhere."
The new jobs for engineers, computer professionals, executives and office workers will support the growing operations of the manufacturing division, which makes trusses, boards, doors, concrete, treated wood and steel siding and roofing sold in Menard stores, Sands said.
Helluva guy, that John Menard. He did all that for a measly $4.2 million.
And he waited a whole two months before signing a deal to put a manufacturing/distribution center in Iowa!
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