Former GM Plant Near Shreveport, La., Offers Prime Opportunity for New Investment, Jobs

Modern Industrial Property in Excellent Condition, Ready for Occupancy Before End of 2012

SHREVEPORT, La. — The former General Motors Shreveport plant was for more than 30 years a generator of jobs and economic opportunity in Northwest Louisiana. Now, the RACER Trust is moving to ensure that the facility continues to be a provider of steady employment in one of America’s fastest-growing metropolitan areas.

GM built the Shreveport Assembly and Stamping Plant in 1981 and produced light-duty pickup trucks there until late last month. It has advised the RACER Trust that it plans to vacate the property by November 30, 2012.

The RACER Trust owns the Shreveport plant and more than 80 other facilities owned by GM before its 2009 bankruptcy. RACER stands for Revitalizing Auto Communities Environmental Response Trust; it was established to clean up and sell the former GM properties to new owners who will create new jobs in auto communities hurt by the loss of GM jobs.
With GM’s cooperation, RACER has been marketing the Shreveport property to prospective purchasers since taking ownership in March 2011. As production ends, RACER is anticipating increased activity among prospects.

“This is an exceptional industrial property in every way you can imagine,” RACER Trustee Elliott P. Laws said. “GM and its employees maintained the buildings and grounds in very good condition. No environmental cleanup is necessary. The infrastructure is outstanding, and the community and State of Louisiana are tremendously supportive of business investment. We’re optimistic that the market will see the opportunities this site represents and that it will again serve as a source of good jobs and economic activity.”

“We’re confident that prospective buyers will see this for what it is — a rare opportunity to acquire a first-rate asset in a thriving market that is loaded with amenities,” RACER Redevelopment Manager Bruce Rasher said. “I’ve spent most of my career in commercial and industrial real estate, and I can say from experience that properties like this do not come on the market very often. Combine the quality of the asset with exceptional transportation logistics and the presence of a highly trained, highly skilled, highly motivated workforce, and we have a very desirable package to offer a prospective buyer.”

The property, totaling approximately 3.5 million square feet, includes more than 1.8 million square feet of air-conditioned manufacturing space and nearly 530 acres of land. In addition to the main manufacturing building, the facility features a 1.5-million square-foot building that GM used as a paint shop; a stamping plant building with 50-foot ceiling clearance; an on-site powerhouse and wastewater treatment; a rail spur; and 18 miles of conveyer line. The acreage provides ample room for expansion, and the facilities are easily adaptable to accommodate multiple-use tenants.

The plant has nearby access to interstate highways, airports and the largest network of ports in the U.S., and is a cornerstone of a region that ranked 9th among 360 U.S. metropolitan areas for gross domestic product growth in 2010, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Since March 2011, GM had continued production under a lease arrangement with RACER. GM ceased production at the plant on August 30 and notified RACER that it would vacate the site effective November 30, after a period of decommissioning and equipment removal and storage.

 “Our focus now, working in cooperation with our partners in the private sector, in Caddo Parish, the City of Shreveport and with the State of Louisiana, is to make sure this facility is returned to productive use as quickly as possible so it can resume its role as an economic driver and source of security for local families,” Mr. Laws said.

A 52-page marketing brochure for the property is available at http://racertrust.org/files/shreveport-marketing-brochure.pdf.

About the RACER Trust:

The RACER (Revitalizing Auto Communities Environmental Response) Trust was created in March 2011 by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court to clean up and position for redevelopment properties and other facilities owned by GM before its 2009 bankruptcy. RACER is the largest environmental remediation and response trust in U.S. history and one of the largest holders of industrial property in the United States. The Trust, which is independent, was created by a settlement agreement between the U.S. Government, the 14 states where the former GM properties are located, and the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe, which owns land adjoining one of the properties in Upstate New York.