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Boise folk rehired for new plant By DAVID PRESZLER Less than than 18 months after fire destroyed its Medford plywood plant, Boise Cascade has rehired nearly all the employees who want to come back. The majority of the 450 Boise employees who were laid off after the Labor Day 1998 fire were placed on a "recall" list based on seniority and skills. Boise officials worked their way through the list as they began bringing employees back to work, first on cleanup and rebuilding efforts and then to restart production late last summer. The company should reach the end of the list by the end of this month, according to spokesman Bob Smith. Not all those employees have returned to Boise -- a number retired, found other jobs or left the area. The rebuilt plant employs about 300 people, and another 30 or so are expected to be hired in coming months, Smith said. The plant is operating at about 90 percent of capacity. He said the firm has been pleased by the pace at which the rebuilding process has progressed. "I think we got more equipment on line by the end of 1999 than we anticipated," Smith said. On Thursday, Boise received one of the chief economic incentives that encouraged it to rebuild the mill. The Oregon Economic Development Department presented the company with a $250,000 check to help cover the cost of retraining employees on new equipment. The money was generated by state lottery funds. The training money is one of three main incentives used to convince Boise to rebuild. The state also spent $350,000 in transportation money improving public roads and infrastructure around the rebuilt plant off North Pacific Highway. Also as part of the deal, the plant site was added to Medford's Urban Enterprise Zone, resulting in a tax break for Boise. The designation freezes property taxes for three to five years at their level immediately after the fire. The zone can offer short-term tax relief on new buildings and equipment at the site. Company officials have estimated that could save about $1 million. Today's Business Index Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA