Marshall County area officials and economic development professionals are hopeful a ready-to-move-in manufacturing facility will bring in a business seeking to get up and running quickly.
Business and community representatives broke ground Sept. 15 on a new building, designed for manufacturing, at 2809 Jim Neu Drive in Plymouth. Marshall County officials say developing readily available buildings for industry has been a successful strategy for the county, which has sparked industrial growth for that region.
Officials point to past projects, which show speculative buildings can yield success.
One project brought Pretzels Inc. to Plymouth, which has expanded in recent years. Another site built in Argos was purchased by Sequel Wire and Cable, which also has undergone expansion and added more production equipment.
“Marshall County’s support of these manufacturing centers is a key activity in developing the infrastructure necessary for the South Bend – Elkhart region to increase its industrial base, ultimately increasing the share of employment in higher-pay traded industry clusters, growing per capita income and stimulating the economy,” said Regina Emberton, South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership president and CEO. “Although ample land is one of the region’s resources, too few buildings are readily available to help company growth (so) we can help business expansion and relocation requirements by demonstrating that we have the site and building infrastructure in place to attract investment.”
The new Plymouth speculative building is one of 26 Regional Cities Initiative projects approved for funding by the South Bend – Elkhart Regional Development Authority and is part of the region’s Smart Connected Communities plan, which was awarded $42 million in state grants to support projects located in Elkhart, Marshall, and St. Joseph counties. Totaling nearly $400 million in investments, 18 of the projects are complete, four are under construction, and four more are in the planning phase.
The new Plymouth building will feature access to U.S. 30 and U.S. 31.
The 43,000-square-foot building is expected to be finished by spring 2021. Officials said it will be expandable to more than 100,000 square feet, and also will have access to high-speed fiber networks.
