Has America's Obsession With Manufacturing Jobs Gone Too Far?

A wisconsin town is spending billions, seizing homes, and breaking state law to lure a Taiwanese company.

- Zach Weissmueller

In 2009, Kim and Jim Mahoney bought a one-acre parcel of land in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin, and began designing a home from scratch. A rural village in the southeast corner of the state, the location offered the Mahoneys the chance to enjoy a slice of country living. Jim would have the space to practice target shooting with his bow and arrow, while Kim could view magnificent sunsets from the front yard every night.

At the same time, the cul-de-sac wasn’t too isolated: They were an eight-minute drive to Jim’s work, close to their 12-year-old daughter’s school, and just a few miles from the amenities in town. Most importantly, the price was right for Kim, a paralegal, and Jim, a quality technician for a medical tool company.

They picked custom finishes and furnishings, including a walk-in shower with a railing that they figured would serve them well when they grew old together. Finally, in February 2017, after eight years of construction and $385,000 spent on the land and house, they moved in. They intended to never move again. “This is where we planned to live forever,” Kim Mahoney says.

Their hometown had other plans. In October 2017, the couple learned from a local news report that Mount Pleasant would be the site of a new manufacturing facility. Foxconn—a Taiwanese company known for making iPhones in the Chinese city of Shenzhen—was coming to town. Foxconn planned to turn more than 1,000 acres of farmland into an LCD screen factory.

Three days after seeing the news report, Kim heard from her local councilman. “They said they would be taking our home through eminent domain,” a policy that allows the government to assume ownership of private property whether the current holder likes it or not.