Those traveling on Highway 64 East recently have no doubt seen the earth-moving machines in operation at the site of the Waynesboro Industrial Park. Their task is to level out ten acres of the site that were previously just hills and valleys in order to make the location more inviting to new industries. After the site work is complete, it will be concrete pad-ready, and will accommodate the construction of a building with up to 100,000 square feet.
The City of Waynesboro received a TNECD Select Tennessee Certified Site grant in the amount of $1.4 million to use for the development of the location. The grant comes with a 10% match amount of $140,000 from the city.
The Select Tennessee Certified Sites program has helped communities prepare industrial sites for private investment and job creation since 2012. The program sets rigorous standards to give companies detailed and reliable information during the site selection process.
“Supporting Tennessee communities in developing shovel-ready industrial sites is essential as our state continues to lead the nation with one of the fastest growing economies,” TNECD Commissioner Stuart McWhorter said. “Through the Select Tennessee Certified Site program, we are ensuring that both our rural and urban regions have the assets in place to continue recruiting new projects to the state, and we look forward to seeing the future growth and opportunities that result from these new certified sites.”
The Select Tennessee certification process ensures that each certified site meets high quality standards and are primed for development. Qualifications for certification include documented environmental conditions and geotechnical analysis, existing onsite utilities or a formal plan to extend utilities to the site, and truck-quality road access.
