Construction equipment maker Wacker Neuson Corp. plans to expand its Menomonee Falls facility, and the village is considering possible financing assistance for the project.

Wacker Neuson operates a 430,000-square-foot manufacturing facility at N92 W15000 Anthony Ave., in the industrial area north of Highway 45, between Pilgrim Road and Fountain Blvd. The company, which has around 360 employees, plans to add 97,000 square feet, with future expansions planned, said Village Administrator Mark Fitzgerald.

The expansion would require the company to spend an unusual amount of money on site preparation work because of bedrock that needs to be blasted and removed, Fitzgerald told me. So, the village is considering a proposal to help finance some of those expenses, he said.

"We want to be able to accommodate their ability to expand long-term," Fitzgerald said.

Fitzgerald said he didn't how many jobs Wacker Neuson would add through the expansion. He said the project does eliminate the possibility that the company will relocate the operation to Michigan.

The Plan Commission, at Tuesday night's meeting, will consider a proposal to grant preliminary approval for a tax incremental financing district to help pay for those costs.

With a such a tax district, a community will typically borrow money to help finance a development. The project's property taxes pay off that debt over several years. Once the debt is paid off, the property taxes from the new project then flow to the community, its school district and other local governments.

The initial approval only creates boundaries for the district, which could include some other industrial properties in the area for possible future projects, Fitzgerald said.

A project plan, which includes details on how much money would be spent, and the estimated time frame for its pay back, will come before the Plan Commission and Village Board for consideration later this summer, he said.