El Monterey announced that it will open its second processing facility in the former Pillsbury building on FM 84 in north Denison bringing 423 jobs. The 40 year old company's original plant is in Dinuba, Calif. The Denison location will be the company's first outside of California; it will service the eastern portion of the United States.

"Denison is a great town," began Bryce Ruiz, executive vice president of Ruiz Foods, parent company of El Monterey. "We are getting off on the right foot and have a great partnership with Denison. We are confident that we can make this work in Denison."

Amid local and state dignitaries, the announcement was made on location at the former plant, which was vacated by General Mills - the parent company for Pillsbury - in 2003. Gov. Rick Perry was on hand along with State Rep. Larry Phillips, county commissioners, Denison city councilmen and mayor and industry and community leaders.

In what could be the biggest announcement since the closing of the railroad more than 15 years ago, Denison will get a new partner in its business community and a state and national leader in food manufacturing. Denison officials are smiling and optimistic about the addition to their city. Estimates show that Ruiz (pronounced 'Reese') Foods could invest up to $50 million in its new Denison facility. The company is also purchasing the Sonoco portion of the complex. The Sonoco Company provided packaging materials for Pillsbury products and its building shared a common wall with the Pillsbury building when it was in operation.

"This is a significant impact on our economy right now," said Tony Kaai, Denison Development Alliance president. "And it could be higher next year."

"This is the largest manufacturing announcement in the city of Denison in the last 20 years; maybe, ever," continued Kaai. "The total jobs and the investment of high tech equipment are unprecedented." He estimated that the John Mansfield plant, north of Denison was the last "biggest" addition to the Denison community. He also noted that Kwikset - a division of Black and Decker - has had expansions on its facility in Denison but it started out smaller than El Monterey will.

Other Denison officials agreed that the announcement brings Denison back, at least in part, from the loss of industry in the last few years.

"This is a great day for Denison. We are thrilled and honored to have this fine family company choose Denison," said Jerdy Gary, DDA board chairman. "With this announcement, it represents almost 1,000 new direct jobs in the past 18 months. I want to commend the city council and staff for their unwavering support of DDA."

Ruiz Foods Chairman and CEO Fred Ruiz was also on hand for the announcement. He noted that Denison is like Dinuba, Calif. and it has been a pleasure to work with that city.

The Ruiz Foods corporate team posed for a picture during the announcement in Denison Friday.

"I see the same things here in Denison that we have enjoyed in Dinuba," said Fred Ruiz. "We hope to build a trust and help this community as a good corporate partner. I've learned one thing in this business; that people are important and we will continue that belief here by working together with the city and everyone else. I'm excited." Fred also praised his son, Bryce, for the work he did in discovering Denison for the company's expansion.

"It was personal for him and I think it shows his commitment to us and Denison," he said.

"We work well together; Denison is known as a dynamic town and has a way of coming up with solutions," said Bryce Ruiz who will become Ruiz Foods chairman in 2008. "We were able to grow our business in Dinuba with the help of that city and now, we feel we can take it to another level here in Denison." Bryce added that Kaai, Mayor Bill Lindsay, City Manager Larry Cruise and the entire city staff were "great" to work with over the past few weeks.

Under the performance agreement approved by DDA prior to the announcement, the economic development arm of the city will provide $3,000/job for 423 jobs; not to exceed $1.27 million. The five year agreement requires that Ruiz Foods report to DDA on a quarterly basis and payments will occur as the company meets the salary and investment incentives.

In a rare occurrence, four governmental entities met prior to the announcement to discuss and approve incentive agreements Friday at the former Pillsbury plant including the Grayson County Commissioners Court, the city of Denison, the Grayson County College Board of Trustees and the Denison Development Alliance. The first three taxing entities approved 100 percent tax abatement for 10 years for the company.

In addition to the performance agreements and tax abatements, the state of Texas has committed $1.5 million to Ruiz Foods under the Texas Enterprise Fund. There is an application process and it is done through a contractual agreement much like the DDA agreement, according to Kaai.

Early plans for the new company include opening their new facility within six months with a workforce of about 250 employees; others will be added in the following months to bring the total to 423.

Company officials wasted no time in making their mark on the former Pillsbury building in Denison Friday.

El Monterey is the largest manufacturer of frozen Mexican food in the United States, but its humble beginnings are still part of the company environment; and that's one of the reasons for choosing Denison for its second location, according to company officials.

Kaai also praised the Sherman Economic Development Corporation (SEDCO) for its help in bringing El Monterey to the area.

"They went to Austin with us to meet with the governor's staff and company representatives in this process," explained Kaai. "It shows we're in this together."

One local businessman in attendance summarized the event in regional terms.

"It is a great day in Denison and a great day for north Texas," said Robert Crawley, DDA board member.

For more information on the new Denison industry, visit www.ruizfoods.com.