The Austin Port Authority approved a lease buyout on the former Austin Packaging Company building to Bellisio Foods Inc. for $681,000 during the port authority’s Wednesday meeting.

Bellisio Foods acquired APC for $6.1 million in July after the company went under receivership earlier this year.

The port authority had agreed to allow Bellisio Foods to take over APC’s lease, but asked for financial information from the company in October to ensure its interests.

Interim executive director Tom Dankert told the port authority Bellisio would rather buy the building from the port authority, effective February of next year. About $380,000 will go to the city of Austin, which helped to finance the APC building’s construction several years ago. The port authority will receive about $300,000.

In other news, the port authority:

—Heard an update on The Hormel Institute’s expansion project. Project manager Jon Erichson told the port authority the Austin Planning Commission on Tuesday approved rezoning 23 properties owned by The Hormel Foundation. The properties, east of the Institute, were reclassified from single-family housing to multi-purpose family/commercial property, which will allow Institute officials flexibility in planning the upcoming expansion.

Erichson said the property will likely include a parking lot at its southern end, though there are no firm plans for the property yet. He told the port authority that Institute officials still expect to break ground in late spring or early summer 2014.