A Neenah, Wisconsin-based packaging manufacturer has begun construction on a 126,000-square-foot expansion of its Lakeville location in a $7 million investment that it said will add 15 jobs to its workforce here.
 
Menasha Packaging, a subsidiary of privately owned Menasha Corp., counts three Minnesota facilities among its 30 locations around the country: Lakeville, Brooklyn Park and Windom. The company has had a presence in Lakeville since 1969.
 
According to Lakeville City Council documents, Menasha Packaging currently employs 221 people with an annual payroll of about $15.2 million at its location in the Airlake Industrial Park at 8085 220th St. W. The council approved a business subsidy agreement with Menasha Packaging in April and as part of a tax-increment financing agreement will assist in more than $1.3 million in site-development costs associated with the project. Per the agreement, assistance won’t exceed $628,018 and will be provided on a pay-as-you-go basis over nine years beginning in 2016.
 
Menasha said construction—expected to conclude by year’s end—will increase its 238,000-square-foot Lakeville property by 50 percen and create the company’s first location with design, production and fulfillment under the same roof. The plant’s property value is expected to be between $8 million to $8.75 million after the expansion. In Lakeville, Menasha manufactures corrugate boxes and designs and produces displays for consumer packaged goods companies.
 
The company declined to comment when asked to provide details about what types of jobs would be added and salary information for the new jobs.
 
Minnesota’s job creation fund, launched earlier this year by the department of environment and economic development, provided an additional $422,520 to assist in the expansion. Gov. Mark Dayton thanked the company in a statement released late Wednesday afternoon. The state’s job creation fund has so far awarded $12 million to companies that have committed to creating more than 1,300 new jobs and investing $224.3 million to expand.