Tennessee officials have signed off on more than $13 million in Site Development Grant funding for 10 communities, and Morgan, Roane and Robertson counties walked away with the largest chunks of the cash. The money is aimed at getting industrial sites truly shovel-ready by covering costs like land clearing, access roads and sewer lines so local leaders can move faster when a company comes knocking. Economic development officials say the infusion should help clear long-standing bottlenecks involving utilities, access and land acquisition that have stalled projects in the past.
Big award winners
Top dollar in this round went to the Morgan County Economic Development Board, which received $4,372,209 for the Morgan County East Industrial Park. The Industrial Development Board of Roane County picked up $4,049,654 for work at the Buttermilk Road site, and the Industrial Development Board of Robertson County landed $3,136,979 for access-road construction at the White House Union Springs Business Park.
Other awards included $975,000 to the Industrial Development Board of McMinnville-Warren County for sewer improvements at Mountain View Industrial Park North and $773,500 to Jackson Energy Authority for sewer upgrades at Airport Industrial Park Site B. Due-diligence or engineering grants of $100,000 went to Lewisburg, Montgomery County, Scott County and the Nickajack Port Authority, while Sparta received $71,280. According to the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development, the grants total more than $13 million and will help communities prepare sites for Select Tennessee certification.
Program context
The Site Development Grant program is funded under the Rural Economic Opportunity Act and is designed to close pre-development gaps such as grading, utility design and property work that can scare off investors. State and local reporting note that since 2016 the SDG program has distributed roughly 220 grants totaling nearly $150 million and that upgraded sites have helped generate about 8,471 jobs across Tennessee. This round’s applications were reviewed by an advisory committee that included TNECD, Austin Consulting, TVA, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, the Tennessee Department of Transportation and USDA, and local lawmakers backed the awards, as reported by 3B Media News.
Leaders say shovel-ready sites win projects
“Access to a shovel-ready site can be the deciding factor in whether a company chooses Tennessee or another state,” Deputy Gov. and TNECD Commissioner Stuart C. McWhorter said in the state announcement. TNECD cast the grants as part of a broader effort to boost rural competitiveness, and local development directors told outlets the money should finally remove some technical and ownership hurdles that have dragged out earlier deals. With engineering and property work covered, counties expect to move into procurement and permitting phases that often make or break a project.
Next steps for counties
Grant recipients plan to use the awards to wrap up due diligence, finish engineering designs and start initial road and sewer construction. After that, they will chase Select Tennessee certification so they can market the sites more aggressively to site selectors. Officials stressed that many projects will still need local matching funds, permits and steady follow-through to land actual tenants, but the grants are intended to shorten response times when companies express interest, 3B Media News reported. Communities with questions about how the money will be handled were directed to their county economic development offices and to the TNECD communications contact listed in the state release.
