Progress Park project mulled

By NATE HUBBARD

The Wythe County Board of Supervisors held a special work session Thursday night to discuss the possibility of undergoing a major project that would prepare an undeveloped portion of the industrial zone for a snazzy new (and for now hypothetical) tenant.
“The purpose today is so that everyone’s eyes are wide open as we go down the path,” said County Administrator Cellell Dalton.
The area being discussed is a 166-acre parcel known as Lot 24 located just southwest of the existing Gatorade and Amcor buildings.
Under the preliminary figures presented by Dalton, it would cost $12.8 million to develop the lot itself and $11.6 million to make offsite improvements such as extending railroad tracks, roads and water and sewer lines to the lot.
Funding for the overall $24.4 million project would come from a variety of sources, but Dalton’s initial estimates show the county would need to take out $9.8 million in loans to complete the entire undertaking.
Based on the scenario presented Thursday, Dalton said the supervisors would need to bump up the real estate tax rate from 43 cents per $100 of assessed value to 47 cents.
No major decisions were made Thursday, but the supervisors agreed to allow county staff to continue with negotiations on the project, advertise for architectural services for the offsite improvements and start the process of obtaining sewer easements on private property.
All of those actions would require no loan money and do not commit the county to any expenses other than those needed to place ads.
“It sounds like a reasonably sound plan,” said Chairman Bucky Sharitz.
Outgoing Lead Mines District Supervisor Eddie Hagee was – per usual – the most vocal member of the governing body during the discussions Thursday night.
He expressed support for the idea of getting Lot 24 ready for an economic recovery, but added that he isn’t convinced that the county is in a position to do so immediately or that any recovery of the national or state economy is imminent.
“Things are not actually booming,” he said. “I know they’re better, but they’re not booming.”
Hagee said he also expects property values to go down at the next assessment, meaning that the county may have to raise taxes by more than the 4 cents/$100 cited in Dalton’s figures.
“I think we need to tread carefully,” he said, going on to say that the county currently has no serious inquiries from industries about the lot. “You could be looking at a substantial increase in your tax rate to make up this money.”
Dalton acknowledged that trying to judge the whims of business investments is difficult.
“The industrial game is a pretty tough one,” he said.
Still, though, the county administrator said he’s confident that – at some point – a fully developed Lot 24 would attract an exceptional tenant.
Dalton also said the process to prepare the lot will be a slow one, meaning that the county still needs to do some work now even if the supervisors don’t want any dirt moved for another year.
Supervisor Danny McDaniel said he thinks the county needs to be ready for an industry before an industry is ready for the county.
“When this economy picks up they’re going to be wanting to go,” McDaniel said. “They’re not going to want to be waiting five years.”
Dalton said all plans for improving Progress Park are contingent upon the county avoiding a major hit from another round of cuts in state funding, especially for education.
If funds get tight, the county administrator said the supervisors could chose to grade only a portion of the lot for a smaller industry.
As with any multi-million dollar project, the endeavor has an inherent amount of risk, but also the possibility for great reward.
“This is one of those things,” said Supervisor Gene Horney, “where you’ll either be a zero or a hero.”
During a brief regular meeting after the work session, the supervisors Thursday also voted to tweak the sick leave policy for county employees.
The new policy allows employees to submit written requests to Dalton to use up to five sick days at a time to care for an ill or injured immediate family member if the employee has already exhausted all of his annual leave.
The old regulations only allowed employees to use their sick time for their own illnesses and injuries.
Nate Hubbard can be reached at 228-6611 or nhubbard@wythenews.com.