In 1991, the Redevelopment Agency and the Scholle Corporation announced that Scholle Corporation would locate a new industrial plant in Merced’s Western Industrial Park.

Scholle Corporation, headquartered in Chicago, is the inventor and maker of plastic “bag in box” packaging, used in wines and in other food products.

The company chose Merced based on the city’s quality of life and the Redevelopment Agency’s assistance package. The RDA purchased land in the Western Industrial Park and then re-sold it to Scholle at a $90,000 discount. In addition to creating over 80 new industrial jobs, the RDA’s original investment of $90,000 has been repaid several times over already. Scholle’s continued expansion assisted by Redevelopment in 1996 has increased the company investment to over $31 million, creating more than $250,000 in new property taxes in 2004 alone.