Tipton County officials and development partners broke ground Tuesday on the Tipton Commerce Center, a new business and industrial park along U.S. 31 just west of Tipton, marking the start of a project years in the making. The site offers parcels ranging from three to 80 acres with planned unit development zoning and access to water, sewer, electricity and natural gas, positioning it to accommodate industrial, logistics and commercial users.
The groundbreaking marked a milestone in efforts to attract business investment, support job creation and strengthen the local economy, according to WISH-TV. The Tipton Commerce Center is a collaborative effort among Tipton County, the North Central Indiana Regional Planning Council and the Indiana Economic Development Corp., with the project backed by a $3 million grant through Indiana's Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative 2.0, known as READI 2.0. Tipton Municipal Utilities is also providing additional support for the development, per the same report.
Dennis Henderson, president of the Tipton County Board of Commissioners, said the project began about six years ago and moved forward through persistence and collaboration, according to The Reporter. The groundbreaking ceremony included representatives from the Tipton County Board of Commissioners, the Tipton County Council, the Tipton County Redevelopment Commission, the North Central Indiana Regional Planning Council, Patch Development and Cushman & Wakefield.
A Site Years in the Planning
Tracey Powell, a Tipton County commissioner, said the county was grateful to the local partners who worked on the project, per the same Reporter account. Abbie Smith, Tipton County's community development director, said the expertise brought by Patch Development and Cushman & Wakefield was critical to advancing the project and would help ensure its success; the two firms are providing development and commercial real estate expertise to position the center for prospective investors and businesses, the outlet reports.
Behind the scenes, Tipton staff have been working through the infrastructure details that will make the site usable. The Commerce Center will require water, sewer and electrical utility extensions, and the county plans to use READI grant funds for much of that work, according to CitizenPortal.ai. The utility is preparing bid packages and working with a consulting firm and the Indiana Municipal Power Agency on designs, the outlet notes. The parcel itself sits west of the water plant and remains owned by the county redevelopment commission, with the county and developer continuing to work out infrastructure plans, per the same report.
Economic Backdrop for the Project
The push for new commercial development comes as Tipton County's job market has tightened. The county's unemployment rate stood at 3.1% in September, down from 3.7% a year earlier, according to the Tipton County Chamber of Commerce. The county had a labor force of about 8,100 people, with roughly 7,800 employed as of that month, the chamber reports. Manufacturing, agriculture and government remain the county's largest employment sectors, with healthcare and construction also significant, per the same data.
Tipton County has about 15,400 residents, a population that has stayed roughly steady over the past five years, the chamber notes. That stability, paired with the tight labor market, is part of the backdrop county leaders cite in pitching the new commerce site as a way to draw fresh investment rather than simply compete for existing workers.
What Comes Next
With zoning and utility access already in place for portions of the site, the next phase will center on turning interest into signed tenants. Businesses interested in the Tipton Commerce Center can reach the Tipton County Community Development Department by email at [email protected], according to The Reporter's account of the groundbreaking.
