The City of Scottsburg and the Scott County Economic Development Corporation have received the first Gold site designation of the Indiana Shovel Ready Program.
The Office of the Lt. Governor Sue Ellspermann and the Office of Community and Rural Affairs awarded the Shovel Ready Gold designation to Scottsburg for the Smith Farm – South Main Industrial Park. Indiana Municipal Power Agency, Banning Engineering and Saegesser Engineering assisted Scottsburg in receiving the highest designation available.
The Indiana Shovel Ready designation certifies sites that are ready for economic development. Certified Shovel Ready, Silver and Gold sites are featured on Indiana’s Site Selector Database and will be included in the Indiana Economic Development Corporation’s (IEDC) marketing materials. According to BusinessFacilities.com, certified shovel ready sites are in growing demand nationwide among companies and site selection consultants looking to build, expand and/or relocate. The Smith Farm – South Main Industrial Park site offers 155 acres of prime industrial development ground.
“We are honored to receive Indiana’s first Shovel Ready Gold site designation,” said Mayor Bill Graham, City of Scottsburg. “There are several efforts underway in Scott County to ensure that companies have the resources they need to establish operations quickly and succeed long-term, from shovel ready sites to a skilled workforce.”
Indiana recognizes three tiers of readiness: Shovel Ready, Shovel Ready Silver and Shovel Ready Gold. The base level defines boundaries with a clear title, establishes a price, demonstrates executive level local government support, defines utility capacity and provides documentation such as Phase I environmental assessment, ALTA, topographical, property layout and plat maps.
Shovel Ready Silver builds upon those attributes by maintaining documentation that is less than one year old and having proper zoning and infrastructure built to the property. Shovel Ready Gold expands beyond Silver by being less than five miles from a two-lane highway and having seismic data, soil borings, a minimum of 20 acres and no environmental concerns.
“We work diligently to ensure we have the infrastructure in place to meet current and future demands of business and industry,” said Robert Peacock, executive director of the Scott County Economic Development Corporation. “We appreciate the State of Indiana recognizing our efforts to grow the local economy and create more jobs in Scott County.”
The Scott County Economic Development Corporation (SCEDC) works with businesses of all sizes in addressing their needs to grow and prosper in Scott County, Indiana. Their dedicated team is focused on helping local businesses and entrepreneurs thrive, and businesses outside of the area relocate, by providing services to increase sales, add jobs and expand operations. SCEDC assists businesses with everything from keeping costs low to building or expanding multi-million dollar facilities.
