(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Two offers have been made to acquire U.S. Steel, which employs thousands of workers at its sites in northwest Indiana.
“Although there's nothing that has materialized, it's interesting,” said Gary, Ind., Mayor Jerome Prince. “It's intriguing at the very minimum.”
The steelmaker is the city’s largest corporate citizen, but Prince said its assessed value has seen a significant reduction over the years.
“Meaning that we don't receive the tax dollars that we used to receive some years ago and not even as much as the city received 25 years ago,” he said.
U.S. Steel also filed for a $47 million tax abatement in 2019 to enhance its technology operations, but Prince told WBBM the city hasn’t seen any additional tax revenue as a result of the company’s gradually increased success.
Rival steelmaker Cleveland-Cliffs and industrial conglomerate Esmark have offered to buy out U.S. Steel. The former’s offer reportedly valued U.S. Steel at over $7 billion.
While the bidding contest continues, Prince noted the City of Gary will continue to move forward.
“Just looking for the greatest outcome for the city to not only provide opportunities for its residents, but also to increase that assessed value and provide additional tax revenue for the city to operate and just deliver basic services,” he said.
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