First Middle Tennessee Industrial Site Certified in TVA Megasite Program
December 15, 2006
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – TVA and community officials announced today that a 1,187-acre Clarksville-Montgomery County industrial site is a certified megasite, a large industrial property suitable for major automotive manufacturing.
The property, known as the Commerce Park, Central Tennessee’s Megasite, was certified by McCallum Sweeney Consulting of Greenville, S.C., an independent firm commissioned by TVA.
Commerce Park is the first certified site in Middle Tennessee and the fourth in the state. Locations of other available certified megasites in the Tennessee Valley are Haywood County, Crockett County, and Chattanooga in Tennessee; Columbus-Lowndes County and near Tupelo in Miss.; and Hopkinsville-Christian County in Kentucky. More details about these sites may be found at TVAsites.com.
“Clarksville’s certified, ready-for-development megasite gives the community and the Tennessee Valley a huge advantage in recruiting new automotive manufacturing facilities and other industries,” said TVA Senior Vice President of Economic Development John Bradley. “There is a growing demand for certified industrial sites in the automotive industry, and the Commerce Park site allows Clarksville and the state of Tennessee to be fierce competitors for quality jobs.”
Working in partnership, TVA’s economic development staff, distributors of TVA power, and area economic development partners will market the site to automotive manufacturers seeking to locate facilities in the Southeast.
“This MSC megasite certification sends a powerful message to developers nationally and internationally that Commerce Park, Central Tennessee’s Megasite in Clarksville-Montgomery County, Tenn., is ready for an automobile assembly plant,” said Clarksville-Montgomery County Economic Development Council President and CEO James Chavez. “Megasite certification represents a huge economic development milestone for our community.”
TVA launched the megasite certification program in March 2004 in response to a growing need for large industrial properties appropriate for automotive manufacturing facilities. Several major manufacturers may locate additional automotive plants in the Southeast during the next decade. Based on its expertise as a site selection consultant for the automotive industry, MSC was selected by TVA as an independent source to evaluate the submitted sites.
“Companies, especially in the automotive industry, are under tremendous market pressures to make site decisions and start up new facilities at a record-breaking pace,” said MSC Senior Principal Ed McCallum. “With the certification of the Commerce Park site, the Tennessee Valley has another addition to its catalog of available sites that are ready to meet the stringent demands of an automotive assembly plant.”
Commerce Park is located approximately 1.5 miles from Interstate 24, off Exit 4 on the northwest side of Highway 79, just north of the Clarksville-Montgomery County Corporate Business Park. The site meets all criteria for MSC certification, including size of at least 1,000 contiguous acres, land availability, transportation access and labor capacity.
“We commend the Clarksville-Montgomery County community for the hard work and team effort that it took to receive this certification,” said Tennessee Economic and Community Development Commissioner Matthew Kisber. “This is a great resource to market for the state, and we look forward to working with the county, TVA and others to attract new industries that will provide more quality jobs for Tennessee residents.”
TVA Economic Development, working with distributor customers of TVA power, Valley communities, regional and state economic development partners, helped retain or attract some 53,000 jobs in fiscal year 2006 and leveraged investments of $4.2 billion in our region. Economic Development is a major part of TVA’s core mission.
More information about economic development in the Tennessee Valley is available at Web sites, TVAed.com and TVAsites.com.
TVA is the nation’s largest public power provider and is completely self financed. TVA provides power to large industries and 158 power distributors that serve approximately 8.7 million consumers in seven southeastern states. TVA also manages the Tennessee River and its tributaries to provide multiple benefits, including flood damage reduction, navigation, water quality and recreation.
Media Contact
Frank Rapley, Nashville, (615) 232-6673
TVA News Bureau, Knoxville, (865) 632-6000
