By Dave Stafford
The Herald Bulletin
ANDERSON, Ind. —
The chief executive officer of Prairie Farms said Friday that jobs at the Anderson dairy rely on an expansion of the plant that requires obtaining a half-acre slice of Shadyside Park. He called potential delays in transferring the property “a very unfortunate situation.”
Prairie Farms CEO Ed Mullins said in a telephone interview that “if there’s an unexpected delay, chances are we will move this (expansion) to another plant. ... I don’t want it to sound like a veiled threat, but it does impact our future in Anderson.”
The coop dairy employs about 160 workers at the plant. For months, the city has been trying to facilitate Prairie Farms’ request to purchase about 0.6 acres of Shadyside Park. On Tuesday, the Anderson Park Board expects to open bids for the property, which require the successful bidder to replicate the sled hill that would be impacted, among other things.
“The proof will be in the pudding on Tuesday,” he said. “We’ll just see how things go.”
Mullins said he believes some people have mischaracterized Prairie Farms’ intentions.
“We’re going to replace that sled hill, just like it is. There’s going to be more money poured into the park, we’re going to build a really nice wall that’s going to be decorated with plants. ... We feel like we’ve done everything we’ve been asked to do, above and beyond,” Mullins said.
“I think the city and the park district have been very cooperative. ... I can’t see where we’ve done anything wrong.”
City and Prairie Farms officials met behind closed doors last week after learning that regulators who oversee parks and grants might require a process that could delay for months the dairy’s acquisition of the land.
Former Madison County Circuit Court Judge Fredrick Spencer has been an outspoken critic of the proposal to transfer Shadyside Park land to the dairy. He has said doing so would disparage the memory of veterans to whom the park was dedicated.
Spencer also has criticized city officials, saying they did not follow proper procedures in the proposed land transfer.
“It’s very unfortunate,” Mullins said.
“We have three plants in Indiana — Fort Wayne, Anderson, and Holland — and we also have a plant in Battle Creek, Mich.,” Mullins said. “We could have put this operation in any one of those four plants.
“We chose Anderson because of the work force, it’s a good work force, we have an excellent relationship with the city, and it was sort of centrally located.”
Production has increased in Anderson beyond Prairie Farms’ ability to store finished products, and the dairy has rented refrigerated space and trucked products to Indianapolis. The expansion is to add thousands of cubic feet of refrigerated space, officials have said.
Mullins said that through acquisitions and product development, the dairy has been in a growth period since he became CEO five years ago, and that’s expected to continue. He said expansion of the plant in Anderson is critical to Prairie Farms’ long-term presence: Without it, production may go elsewhere and take jobs with it.
A 29-year employee, Mullins said he rose through the ranks at Prairie Farms, where he started as a sales rep.
“I was with the company when we purchased Best Ever Dairy from the Hardacre family, and we’ve invested heavily in the city, in that plant, and we’ve grown a number of jobs,” Mullins said. “These are excellent-paying jobs and we want them to stay in Anderson and hope we don’t have to move them somewhere.
Contact Dave Stafford: 648-4250, dave.stafford@heraldbulletin.com
