Claims management firm to bring 212 jobs to Coralville

CORALVILLE - A growing claims management business plans to build a new service location in Coralville that will create 212 jobs if its incentives are approved, according to Iowa City Area Development.

Sedgwick Claims Management Services is working with Iowa City Area Development and the city of Coralville on plans for a new 40,000-square-foot building in the Forevergreen Business Park north of the University of Iowa Research Campus.

The Memphis-based company plans to set up temporary facilities during the construction of the building, for which ground will be broken this fall.

“We are excited about the opportunity to promote job growth and service our growing client base in Coralville, an area that includes outstanding pools of highly motivated and engaged prospective employees,” Sedgwick Executive Vice President of Disability and Absence Management Bradley Johnson said in prepared remarks.

Johnson said Sedgwick plans to hire 60 people before the office becomes operational in January 2013 and fill another 150 positions over the next 24 months.

“Recruitment is under way and training will occur in November,” Johnson said.

Sedgwick administers a wide variety of claims, including workers' compensation, disability, automobile and professional liability, warranty claims, credit card claims, and Medicare compliance.

The company has more than 8,500 employees in over 170 offices in the United States and Canada, including Iowa locations in Bellevue, Dubuque and the Des Moines area.

The City Council is scheduled to vote on two applications for state assistance for the Sedgwick project at its meeting tonight. Tax increment financing for the project through the city is also envisioned.

The council will be asked to approve a request for a $1.28 million forgivable loan under the High Quality Jobs Program administered by the Iowa Economic Development Authority. Eligibility for the program requires that jobs must pay a starting wage of 100 percent of the wage for the laborshed of the employer, and reach 120 percent of the laborshed's average wage within three years.

A laborshed is the area from which the vast majority of employees in a major employment market are willing to commute to work.

The other assistance package the council will consider is a request for Iowa Department Transportation funds to extend Ridgeway Drive and University Parkway 3,450 feet to provide access to the new facility. The amount sought from the Revitalize Iowa's Sound Economy program is not specified. The city of Coralville would contribute at least 20 percent of the funds for the improvements.

The street improvements would provide improved access to the new Forevergreen Business Park planned by a partnership including developer Mike Gatens. Sedgwick would be the first building in the new development, according to Iowa City Area Development Interim President Mark Nolte.

The company referred job applicants to its web site:

https://www.sedgwickcms.com/careerresources/careermap.aspx