city_county_control_ESIP

Posted April 2005

Hamilton County Mayor Claude Ramsey, former Mayor Bob Corker and Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield announced the remaining land adjacent to Enterprise South, which had been under federal control, is now in the ownership of the city and county.

"Today’s announcement is a very significant one for our community and I am very excited to have had the opportunity to make it on one of my last days in office," said Mayor Corker. "The infrastructure is in place, the interchange off of I-75 is being constructed and with this land acquisition, Enterprise South is firmly positioned to be one of the most attractive industrial sites in the country. I predict that very soon it will provide great paying jobs for many citizens in our community."

The announcement is the culmination of a series of acquisitions which began 8 years ago and ensures that the enormous parcel will be available as a site for business and industrial recruitment. The Army and the General Services Administration transfer of the remaining 1,787 acres to the city and county brings the total Enterprise South Industrial Park site to nearly 3,000 acres.

"Today is the culmination of a dream and vision I have had for this community since I was a young man," said County Mayor Claude Ramsey. "I have made it a priority to bring this land under community control so that it can be developed in a way that brings strong businesses and good jobs to this county. This accomplishment is the result of strong partnerships between the city, county, state and federal governments and demonstrates what can be accomplished when our community works together."

The Mayors praised the work of Congressman Zach Wamp, the Army, TDEC and the EPA for helping significantly speed up the transfer of the property, and the General Services Administration for the important role it has played in causing this final transfer to occur. The Mayors also expressed great optimism that the site will provide the community with one of the most important job creation opportunities in its history.

"I look forward to continuing the work of bringing good family-wage jobs to Enterprise South," said Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield. "The city will continue to work in partnership with the County to aggressively market this important site and our community to manufacturing and business prospects across the country."

The Chamber, along with city, county, state and federal governments have devoted significant efforts and resources toward developing Enterprise South Industrial Park to be one of the nation’s premier industrial parks with a focus on ensuring the site attracts the largest number of high paying jobs possible. Over the past two years roads, sewers and an entrance have been added at Enterprise South, complementing the existing rail lines that are on the site. An interchange off of I-75 which will connect directly to the site is currently under construction and companies are already doing business at Enterprise South. Over the next few years, many other businesses and jobs will be added in our community as a result of this effort.

According to Trevor Hamilton, Vice President of Economic Development for the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce, the transfer of acreage positions Enterprise South Industrial Park to achieve full certification for automotive assembly through the TVA's Megasite Certification Program, but McCallum Sweeney Consulting must complete their review before any final determination is made.

"One of the requirements for certification was the acquisition of more land at Enterprise South, which will serve to 'square up' the megasite parcel , making it more attractive to automobile assembly companies, " Hamilton said. "We're submitting the transfer documents to McCallum Sweeney Consulting for their review. We hope that we've cleared the final hurdle and will have some good news to share soon."

The purchase price for the 1,787 acres being acquired is $12.5 million which will be split equally between the city and the county. Because of special legislation passed by Congressman Zach Wamp, $5.5 million of the total purchase is being deferred for 10 years and with no interest.

Earlier this month, the city and county assumed ownership of "Enterprise South Nature Park," a 2,800 acre passive park adjacent to Enterprise South Industrial Park which is currently being developed. The land, which is not suitable for industrial development, was made available through the National Park Service’s Lands to Parks program and required no funding from the city or the county.

Together, Enterprise South Industrial Park and Enterprise South Nature Park bring together nearly 6,000 acres of land that had not been open for public use since the early 1940’s.

The Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce is the leading business and economic development organization for the Chattanooga region. For over 100 years, the Chattanooga Chamber has provided community engagement and opportunities for businesses, large and small, including networking, business promotion, business discounts, and public policy advocacy, as well as leadership development and training opportunities.

In addition, the Chattanooga Chamber is a one-stop-shop for site selectors and business decision-makers considering investments and job creation projects in the Chattanooga region. The Chattanooga Chamber is also responsible for marketing Enterprise South Industrial Park, a top-tier industrial park that offers significant strategic business advantages. In addition, the Chattanooga Chamber administers the Chattanooga Hamilton County Business Development Center, the largest business incubator in the U.S. in terms of the number of start up companies it houses, and the Center for Entrepreneurial Growth, an innovative effort to nurture technology-based start-up companies.

As the first stop for people interested in moving to the Chattanooga, the Chattanooga Chamber provides a range of relocation information including demographics, informational videos, connections to Chattanooga Area jobs, and frequently asked questions.