Kansas City’s biggest employer is about to get a little bigger.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Thursday morning that hundreds of jobs would be coming to the Kansas City area as a result of the relocation of two agencies: the Economic Research Service (ERS) and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA).
The USDA will look on both sides of the state line for a 120,000-square-foot, Class A office space to house the 568 employees relocating from their current offices in Washington, the Kansas City Area Development Council said in a release. The USDA expects to open its Kansas City operations this fall.
Local government agencies offered $26 million in incentives to win the jobs, according to the USDA. The USDA also figures to save nearly $300 million in employment and rent costs over the course of a 15-year lease in the Kansas City area. Savings will be used to fund additional research and employee-retention programs.