The tax break was passed with four votes in favor and one abstention from Commissioner Elba Garcia. Garcia said Nike’s relative lack of diversity on its board and in senior roles was why she abstained.
“I really think they lack, and they have a long way to go when it comes to diversity and inclusion,” she said.
When the deal first came to commissioners on September 6th, Nike had no Latinos and three African Americans on its twelve-member Board of Directors. In late September, the company announced a Hispanic woman joined its board, along with another white man.
Garcia asked for specific future goals for diversity at the company. Jesse Crawford, the county’s director of the office of Small Business Enterprise, said those milestones are “still under development.”
A recent Nike report said that at the director level and above, 14% of employees are Asian, 6% are Black, and 6% Latino. Distribution center employees, by contrast, are almost 89% racial and ethnic minorities.
The Dallas County population is about 41% Latino, 24% Black, 7% Asian, and 27% white.
Representatives of Nike said they plan to have robust community engagement and will work with local colleges to prepare employees for advancement.
“We know that we have not arrived exactly where we want to be, but we know that we’re taking the strides in the right direction,” said Robert Shorty, who works on diversity, equity, and inclusion in Nike’s supply chain.
The deal will reduce increases in appraised value for Nike and its landlord on land and “business personal property” — things like machinery and computers. That, in turn, will reduce their property tax bill. The proposal said the county will abate about $68,000 a year for ten years.
At the same time, it estimates the project will increase the county’s tax base by more than $60 million and support 500 new jobs. Under the county’s abatement policy, the project must employ at least 150 people in three years. The average salary would be $37,000.
The logistics company DHL will operate the distribution center.
Commissioner John Wiley Price, whose district includes Wilmer, praised Nike for returning with another presentation.
“I appreciate the fact you took the scrutiny,” he told company representatives.
Price and Garcia both noted that Wilmer – which is giving Nike its own tax incentives and a cash grant – needs economic development. The city administrator for Wilmer did not immediately respond to an email seeking more detail.
The distribution center was “part of our strategy at Nike that we are putting in regional service centers,” said Emily Whittenburg, a tax specialist at Nike. She noted the Wilmer site “sits in the middle of the United States.”
Got a tip? Email Bret Jaspers at bjaspers@kera.org. You can follow Bret on Twitter @bretjaspers.
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