IYRS gets Commerce RI approval for bonds to fund growth

THE NEW 20,000-SQUARE-FOOT facility at the IYRS School of Technology & Trades is being designed to withstand the effects of climate change and rising sea levels, according to the school and the architects. / COURTESY WILSON ARCHITECTS
THE NEW 20,000-SQUARE-FOOT facility at the IYRS School of Technology & Trades is being designed to withstand the effects of climate change and rising sea levels, according to the school and the architects. / COURTESY WILSON ARCHITECTS

PROVIDENCE – The IYRS School of Technology & Trades is preparing a significant expansion of its programming and campus in Newport, including adding a 20,000-square-foot facility to house its School of Composites Technology and School of Marine Systems.

On Wednesday, the R.I. Commerce Corp. voted to approve the issuance of $8.1 million in state Economic Development Revenue Bonds to facilitate property acquisition and construction costs.

The bonds will be issued by The Washington Trust Co. and repaid by IYRS, a nonprofit that specializes in experiential instruction in marine trades, digital manufacturing and related industries. The school, founded in 1995, earlier this year embarked on a $12 million fundraising campaign for the new facility, according to a news release.

The school attracts students nationally and internationally. It has three accredited academic arms: the School of Composites Technology, School of Boatbuilding and Restoration, and the School of Marine Systems.

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The new facility, to be built on adjoining property to original campus buildings that date to the 18th and 19th centuries, is designed by Wilson Architects of Boston. The facility is designed to withstand flooding and issues related to sea level rise, according to the architect’s project description.

The building will include classroom and trade teaching areas on two upper floors. Much of the program will be technology-based, according to the school.

The Commerce RI action to authorize the bonds followed a determination that the project will assist in the state agency’s economic development mission.

Terry Nathan, president of the school, formerly known as International Yacht Restoration School Inc., told Commerce RI board members that the school has a 90 percent job placement rate for its graduates. The composites program is the only one offered by the school that does not have a wait list for entrants, he reported.

Salaries of graduates are industry-specific, he said, but the composites program has placements at entry level that are well-paid. The more traditional, marine trades graduates typically earn $15 to $20 an hour in their first jobs, he said.

Earlier this year, the school received a $75,000 industry cluster grant from Commerce RI to develop a mobile lab that will visit schools and prisons to educate students about potential careers in advanced manufacturing.

In other business, the Commerce RI board approved two packages of incentives intended to attract new businesses and jobs to Rhode Island.

General Electric’s GE Digital is in the process of establishing an office in downtown Providence and hiring the first of what is anticipated to be at least 100 jobs.

The company, a division of GE, will receive state assistance in creating jobs as well as outfitting its new offices. The package as approved by the full Commerce board will include up to $4.6 million for the first 100 jobs, through the Qualified Jobs Incentive Tax Credit program, and up to $650,000 in additional incentives through the First Wave Closing Fund.

The state also created additional incentives through the Qualified Jobs program that will provide the company with up to $7,500 per job for creating a cumulative 300 jobs.

In addition, the board authorized a package for Finlay Extracts and Ingredients USA Inc. The company is the American operator of Finlays, a London-based manufacturer of tea and coffee extracts that produces flavoring for food, beverage and dairy industries.

The package will include up to $1.9 million in Qualified Jobs tax credits and Rebuild Rhode Island tax credits.

The company plans to lease a 15.7-acre site at Quonset Business Park and build two facilities, including a research and development center, and a modern manufacturing and distribution center. The company also plans to hire 73 full-time employees by 2020.

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