August 2006
Megasites No. 6 and 7 are on the map
Large industrial sites in Columbus, Miss., and Haywood County, Tenn., have become the sixth and seventh properties in the TVA service area to be certified as megasites by McCallum Sweeney Consulting.
The Crossroads Megasite, which includes 1,800 acres, is located 11 miles west of Columbus. The site is adjacent to a regional airport and offers easy access to Interstates 55 and 20. Well situated in the center of the southeastern automotive market, Crossroads is the second megasite certified in Lowndes County.
The Haywood County megasite, known as the I-40 Advantage Auto Park, includes 1,700 acres and is suitable for a major automotive manufacturing facility or related industry. It features a prime location, approximately 20 minutes east of the Memphis suburbs and just north of Interstate 40.
Other certified megasites include West Tennessee Auto Park, Enterprise South, Golden Triangle, Wellspring Project, and Hopkinsville-Christian County.
TVA power rates going down
The TVA Board has approved a 4.5 percent reduction in firm wholesale power rates along with a fuel-cost adjustment mechanism that will allow TVA to automatically adjust rates up or down as fuel and purchased-power costs rise and fall. The rate reduction and fuel-cost adjustment mechanism are effective October 1, 2006. The rate reduction is worth approximately $405 million to TVA customers in fiscal year 2007 and will bring average retail residential rates across the Tennessee Valley to about 21 percent below the national average.
Communities can TaP into new resource
The Valley Targeted and Prepared Community Program (TaP) is a new TVA economic development initiative that gives communities access to an innovative strategic planning process. The process includes an in-depth evaluation of a community’s resources and ability to target and recruit specific industry segments, with the potential for bringing additional jobs and investment. Communities are selected through an annual application and independent evaluation process. For more information, see news story.
Looking for a site? Cut to the chase at TVAsites.com.
Explore more than 1,700 available sites (including buildings and land) in the 80,000-square-mile, seven-state region quicker than a New York minute at TVAsites.com. Do multiple searches by city, county, or state, or use the clickable map. Check out the available megasites. Get demographics for a 50-mile radius of any Tennessee Valley location. There’s lots more, but go see for yourself. The site gets over 40,000 hits a year from more than 75 countries. Find out why at TVAsites.com.
Industrial park expansion includes
environmental features
Ground was broken on July 21 for an expansion of the Morgan County, Tenn., Industrial Park that will incorporate sustainable development best practices into its design. Sustainable development is a conservation approach to industrial site design that protects natural resources. “The quality of the expanded industrial park will be an asset to the community in helping attract environmentally sensitive industries that will bring high-paying, quality jobs,” said Morgan County Executive Becky Ruppe.
The Appalachian Regional Commission provided primary funding for the project through a grant that was administered by TVA. John Bradley, TVA Senior Vice President of Economic Development, expressed his appreciation to the ARC and Ruppe for their participation in TVA’s sustainable growth initiative. “The goal is to foster economic growth today and at the same time preserve the environment and protect resources for future generations,” Bradley said. View TVA’s Sustainable Development Guide.
Web site sports new look and sharper focus
TVAed.com, the web site for TVA Economic Development news, resources, and services, has been enhanced to serve you better. New features include breaking news with headlines scrolling on the home page; more descriptive headers and streamlined text to help you get the information you need more quickly; downloadable fact sheets; and more dynamic colors to add a little pop and sizzle to your web site visits. Give us a click and find out why more than 7,000 site selectors, industries, and economic development specialists look to TVAed.com each month as their top resource for the seven-state TVA service area. TVAed.com – One Source. Seven States.
Meet Tim Tidwell
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| Tim Tidwell |
Tim Tidwell is a target market specialist for TVA Economic Development, specializing in the food, distribution, and warehousing industries. He has more than 20 years’ experience in economic and business development in the public and private sectors. He was previously an economic development consultant with the State of Tennessee and marketing manager with the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce. In the private sector, he served as vice president of business development for Rentenbach Constructors in Knoxville.
In describing how he approaches his job, Tidwell says, “As a professional economic developer, my role in helping companies may be likened to putting together a complex puzzle with many pieces. We look at what drives the opportunities and specific needs of each firm in finding a place to locate or expand. These drivers may be some combination of labor, transportation, proximity to suppliers, utility costs, and so forth. It’s my job to find the community that best meets those needs and will enable the company to be profitable and successful."
Tidwell recently helped SYSCO in locating a regional distribution center in Knoxville, Tenn., and helped recruit Colgate-Palmolive to Morristown, Tenn. You can contact Tidwell at 865-673-2289 or ttidwell@tva.com.
Board anticipates future growth needs
Although the ribbon is yet to be cut on the nearly completed refurbishment of Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant Unit 1, the TVA Board is already looking at other potential generating options to power the growing Tennessee Valley economy. When brought online, Browns Ferry Unit 1 will add 1,280 megawatts of capacity to the TVA power system.
On July 28, the TVA Board authorized an evaluation of the cost and schedule for completing a second unit at Watts Bar Nuclear Plant near Spring City, Tennessee. The unfinished unit, which has been held in reserve by TVA since 1985, has the potential to generate more than 1,100 megawatts of power. The TVA Board approved $20 million in its fiscal year 2007 budget to get the study under way.
TVA also continues to explore building a new nuclear plant at its Bellefonte site in North Alabama. The NuStart Energy Development Consortium, of which TVA is a member, is doing the preliminary work required to apply to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a combined construction and operating license. The earliest that construction could be completed on a new Bellefonte unit is 2016.
“Although no decisions have yet been made on future generating plants, I think the Board’s action sends a clear signal that the Tennessee Valley is ‘open for business’ and preparing for a bright future,” says TVA Economic Development’s John Bradley. “We know that reliable and affordable power is key for a vital economy, and TVA is at the table to make sure that power resource is there when it is needed.”
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