Effingham County IDA Approves Scaled Down Moon River Studios Project
Staff Report From Savannah CEO
Monday, October 26th, 2015
FONU2, Inc. announced today that the Effingham County Industrial Authority ("IDA") has voted and approved a new Memorandum of Understanding ('MOU") with the Company. Some of the key terms of the new MOU are as follows:
- The initial leased area will consist of Phase One on the Master Plan, which allows for the construction of ten stages, four warehouses, support buildings, and offices.
- The annual lease payments will be reduced from $555,000 per year to $51,000 per year.
- The required capital investments have been reduced from Ninety Million Dollars ($90,000,000) to Ten Million Dollars ($10,000,000) over a five year period.
- Unless otherwise in use, the Company will have full access to the balance of the property for shooting, construction of back lots, etc.
- The IDA will be responsible for all of the construction costs of the roads and waterlines on the initial leased area.
- The IDA has authorized the transfer of the current contract with Preferred Site Construction to be transferred to their name as the client, and upon final review, for construction of the roads and infrastructure to begin as soon as possible.
"I would like to thank John Henry and all of the members of the Effingham County IDA," stated Jake Shapiro, Chairman of the Board of FONU2. "We have been working hard and in tandem with the IDA to finalize a plan that was a win-win for all parties, and that was structured for success with reasonable and attainable goals. The ten stages approved in the Phase One of the Master Plan could theoretically support five to eight films per quarter, or twenty plus feature films per year. I believe with this new agreement, the project is better 'scaled for success.'"