Sometimes I feel this column has turned into an economic development column! I do think, however, it is very important for our citizens to understand the reality of economic development in Elizabethton and Carter County. This is information you can use to make household decisions and use when you go to the polls to vote for your local politicians. This time, I want to talk about what industries (specifically manufacturing, warehousing, and assembly) look for in a location and how that relates to future prospects for Carter County.
First, they want access to a 4-lane highway. This qualification immediately eliminates three-quarters of the county leaving only Hampton, Elizabethton, Hunter, and Happy Valley/Central areas with potential locations. Ideally, industries want to be near (usually within 10 miles) an Interstate. Many will locate away from an Interstate, but this would be a preferred or ideal site. This preference would eliminate all but Happy Valley/Milligan/Central and the Okolona area.
Secondly, industries must have access to utilities. Water, of course, is a must and usually most would desire to see a minimum of an 8-inch water line with the preference of a 10-12-inch water line. Access to sewer service is also another must. Phase 3 power must also be available at the industrial site in order to operate the electric sucking equipment. Not all industries need access to natural gas or fiber optics, but these are typically considered must-haves especially if sites in other communities offer access to these services. Access to water and sewer eliminates some of our remaining potentials leaving Elizabethton, parts of Milligan/Pinecrest and the Okolona area.
Now that we've narrowed down a few potential areas, let's look for some sites. A potential industrial site must be flat (ideally less than 6 percent grade) so we would start looking for as flat a site as we could find in the remaining areas. The flatter the site that can be found, the less grading that will have to be completed by local governments in order to sell the site. The site will also need to be around a minimum of 10 acres with a preferred size of 20 acres. It's starting to get a little tough now! Where around Elizabethton, Milligan/Pinecreast, or the Okolona area is there 10-20 acres of relatively flat (less than 10 percent grade) land that is owned by one, two, maybe three people. Ideally, we would like to see more like 50+ acres of relatively flat land owned by 4 maybe 5 people in order to spread the expense over multiple properties and industries.
Assuming there is such a site, the land owners must agree to sell at a reasonable price, the cities and county will need to work together to purchase the property, pay to grade the property, and pay to extend utility services to the site. After all of this is done, an incentives package will need to be put together and we must make sure there is an available, educated or trained workforce to meet the needs of the industry.
As you can see, this process has a lot of moving parts! I hope this gives you an idea of what it takes to recruit and bring new industry into a community. Keep in mind this whole process may take 10 years or more from start to opening day of a new industry and require hundreds of thousands of tax dollars. While we most certainly continue our efforts growing and working with our existing industry, it is my opinion that Elizabethton and Carter County must begin looking at other forms of economic infusion in our local economy and tourism is a great start! Let's talk about it!
UPDATE: Read my follow-up column to this one -- The Future of Elizabethton's Economy.
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