Project Power company has previous ties to Tampa Bay — but is staying put in Colorado
By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Aug 26, 2022

The company behind Project Power, a nearly 400-job economic development prospect that was said to be considering Tampa, has revealed itself to be Caliola Engineering LLC.

Caliola on Friday announced the incentive package, worth up to $3.94 million, that the Colorado Economic Development approved on Thursday. The company's news release touted the growth it foresees in Colorado Springs in light of the incentive package but did not mention San Diego or Tampa, which the CEDC was told was its competition for the expansion.

Companies negotiating economic development incentive packages frequently mention other states and cities as leverage, but Caliola appears to have had some ties to the Tampa Bay area. In January, Caliola was among 15 companies from around the world chosen to participate in the Tampa Bay Wave's CyberTech|X Accelerator program cohort.

The company said it received a job growth incentive tax credit in Colorado, which "is an eight-year job creation incentive to support competitive, multistate or country relocation and expansion projects." Such tools are nearly nonexistent at a state level for Florida's economic developers. The state's qualified target industry incentive, a state and local tax refund program, expired in 2020.