Walker County, Ga., officials today announced they completed a land purchase to create a 463-acre industrial park site -- inspired partly by Chattanooga's success in luring a Volkswagen automobile manufacturing plant to the Enterprise South Industrial Plant.
The county spent $10,000 an acre, or about $423,000, to buy 423 acres from Joe Swanson fronting U.S. 27 north of W. Reed Road. The money came from bonds sold as part of the recently approved special purpose local options sales tax.
Three manufacturers have expressed interest in locating there, county Economic Development Authority Executive Director Larry Brooks said. The largest business, dubbed "Project Eagle" by county officials, would provide some 200 jobs, he said.
Having the publicly owned land will help Walker County attract businesses that create jobs, Brooks said.
"If you don't have anything to market, then it's very unlikely you're going to draw companies in," he said.
For complete details, see tomorrow's Chattanooga Times Free Press.