Although Salt Lake City has lost out in a bid for a 1,000-job western credit card operation of Chase Manhattan Bank, bank officials are trying to soothe the loss with the thought that they have opened other centers and more could be established.
Salt Lake City and Tempe, Ariz., were the two finalists for the center, according to Chase officials, but Gov. Norm Bangerter received a letter saying that Tempe was selected."It was indeed a tough call, but in the end economic considerations tipped the scales in favor of Arizona," said Thomas B. Labracque, chairman of the board. "Although circumstances may have ruled against the Salt Lake City area for this particular enterprise, it will certainly receive serious consideration from Chase going forward," he wrote.
Kirk Green, Utah Division of Business and Economic Development director, said he is disappointed with the decision, because state officials have been trying to lure the Chase operation to Utah for nearly a year. "However, I felt good that Chase officials considered Utah as strongly as they did," he said.
"I believe that if people receive information about Utah and understand the benefits of doing business in the state, many businesses will locate here," Green said.
Asked what he thought tipped the scales in Tempe's favor, Green said Chase officials were pretty tight-lipped about the decision. However, Green has a feeling Tempe officials "put together an aggressive economic package to land the new operation.
Included was the willingness to defray the difference in utility costs between Salt Lake City and Tempe and tax abatements, two things that Utah law does not allow state economic development officials to offer companies contemplating moving to the state.