Frederick County Council members unanimously approved a resolution of support — including a $200,000 commercial and industrial tax credit — for Kite Pharma at their meeting Tuesday.

The California-based drug company will add between 440 and 720 new jobs at its proposed site in Urbana by Dec. 21, 2025, according to a staff report. The plant will begin commercial production by late 2021, The Frederick News-Post previously reported.

Helen Propheter, director of the county’s Office of Economic Development, and Heather Gramm, the office’s assistant director, presented the resolution to council members.

Propheter and Gramm said initial reports that the company would bring 900 jobs were probably based on the fact that 900 parking spaces were approved for the site, based on county planning documents.

“At the time, no public information had been released, so all the reporting was purely based on what was presented at the Planning Commission hearing,” Gramm said. “I think the assumption was based on the parking spaces, but no official information was released at that time based on the county or the company. It was still under confidential nondisclosure agreements.”

To attract Kite Pharma, the county offered a $200,000 commercial and industrial business tax credit, a 10-year real property tax credit available to companies that produce at least 25 permanent jobs paying at least 150 percent of the federal minimum wage.

The state’s Department of Commerce is offering a $2 million conditional loan to Kite Pharma through Advantage Maryland, one of its programs. The $200,000 county tax credit is a required match from the state, according to a staff report.

Propheter said the tax credit is based on the incremental difference between what the property is assessed at now and the improvements Kite Pharma is making, including the value of the 279,000-square-foot building it will operate in.

The credit is based on state tax credits when County Executive Jan Gardner (D) first took office, Propheter said.

“She actually had done some research of what was being offered at the state, and we were able to bring from the state laws, kind of mirroring and enabling legislation so that we could offer it here at the county,” she said.

Kite Pharma works in cancer research treatments and makes Yescarta, an immunotherapy cancer drug. Council members expressed support for the project resolution Tuesday, including Councilman Jerry Donald (D). It passed 7-0.

Kite Pharma is “making improvements on the property,” Donald said. “And they’re making big improvements on the property, and all we’re doing is giving them a break for a few years on the improvements they make. ... They’re still paying what they would have paid on the property before, had it not been improved.”

Donald added that the site is a great addition to the county, noting that people not having to commute down Interstate 270 is huge.

“This is a big win for Frederick County, and a big shoutout to [the Office of] Economic Development for being able to put this together. ... People in Urbana for years had to drive down [I-270]. ... Can you imagine living in Urbana and working in Urbana?”

Fitzwater’s anti-discrimination bills pass 

Councilwoman Jessica Fitzwater’s (D) anti-discrimination bills both passed 7-0 Tuesday.

The bills update two sections of the Frederick County code, adding “gender identity” and “sexual orientation” to groups of people who can’t be discriminated against for housing, employment and public accommodation and brings the code up-to-date with state law.

Councilman Phil Dacey (R) thanked Fitzwater for introducing the legislation.

“It’s nice to have a bill that’s so non-controversial. ... There’s general consensus and broad support for it, I haven’t heard any opposition to it,” he said.