Arguably the biggest slam dunk for the region during the legislative session saw nothing but air this weekend when a Canadian company decided it would stay put in lieu of building a jet plant in Kansas City.

Monday evoked it’s-not-if-you-win-or-lose-it’s-how-you-play-the-game sentiments from local officials, who envisioned aerospace outfitters would relocate to St. Joseph in order to outfit the proposed operation just 30 minutes south on Interstate 29.

But the home team advantage won out.

The roughly $240 million lure in incentives Sen. Charlie Shields, R-St. Joseph, pushed this year didn’t shine enough to catch Bombardier, whose French Canadian name proved an exercise in pronunciation for Missourians,

“Obviously I’m disappointed and I’m not surprised,” said Ted Allison, chief executive officer of the St. Joseph Area Chamber of Commerce. “I think the fact we were competing with a company that already is a host made it an uphill battle.”

The company announced Sunday at an English air show it would assemble its new C-series aircraft in a Montreal suburb. Bombardier will manufacture the wings in Northern Ireland.

The choice would ensure access to a skilled aerospace work force, Bombardier president Guy Hachey stated in the company announcement.

“Both Canada (final assembly) and the United Kingdom (wing assembly) linked their incentive packages and increased the up-front money for Bombardier,” Mr. Shields wrote in an e-mail to the News-Press from England. “This made it impossible for Missouri to win in this competition. However there are several positives that came out of this process.”

While Missouri has been overlooked for the $375 million plant that would’ve employed up to 2,100 workers, Mr. Shields said Bombardier has indicated it is “very appreciative of Missouri’s efforts” and will consider the Show-Me State as a contender for a 1,000-plus job project that would involve another aircraft in its aerospace division.

“Missouri’s efforts to attract Bombardier have caught the attention of economic developers around the world and they know that Missouri is in a position to contend for large economic development projects in the future,” Mr. Shields said.

Legislation recently signed by Gov. Matt Blunt would’ve issued Bombardier up to $240 million in tax credits over a period of eight years, beginning in 2013. Those credits were to be tied to the company’s payroll. The proposal capped any of the state’s potential negative cash flow to $155 million.

Unlike other Missouri tax credits, the plan included a repayment mechanism that would’ve recouped the state’s money by charging royalties on sold planes.

Plan critics argued Bombardier only negotiated with Missouri to up the stakes in the company’s home country.

Proponents said even if rejected, the state could use the Bombardier package — now null and void — as a basis for future developments.

“I don’t feel we were used, but it certainly did benefit the company in creating a competitive environment for Montreal,” Mr. Allison said. “... Now we have a model that can compete when the opportunity arises.”

Alyson E. Raletz can be reached

at alysonraletz@npgco.com.