News from JCEDO

The Jasper County Economic Development Organization (JCEDO) released its annual report for 2011-2012 and sent me a copy. (I guess I am on their mailing list.) The JCEDO is a "public-private partnership incorporated in 1986 as a 501(c)(3) corporation." It purpose is to "Strengthen and diversify the local economy, attract quality jobs, and encourage entrepreneurial growth to create opportunities for Jasper County  and it residents." The report is a pdf file, but is not currently available on the Internet. (I asked and was told that a new website is under development. When it is completed, future documents of this sort should be available on-line.)

The most interesting part of the document was a look at eleven successful projects that were recently completed or expected to be completed in the near future. In alphabetical order, they are:

The $108 million Advanced Auto Parts distribution center in Remington is now fully operational. It has 566,000 square feet of space.

The American Melt Blown & Filtration plant in Rensselaer is starting up. It will use 67.000 square feet of space in the old Schumacher building and has a projected employment of 40.

ConAgra Foods in Rensselaer relocated four popcorn packaging lines from Iowa in the Fall of 2011, which resulted in about 20 additional employees.

The Fair Oaks Compressed Natural Gas fueling station was completed in September 2011. It supplies the local dairy's truck fleet.

The trucking company How About That is constructing a new building north of Jasper Junction with completion expected this fall. It will be able to accommodate 40 employees.

Iroquois Bio-Energy Company at Pleasant Ridge (the ethanol plant) is construction a 775,000 bushel grain bin with completion scheduled this fall. The cost is $2 million.

The Legacy Farms/Pig Adventure in Fair Oaks is a $10 million, 143,000 square foot pig operation that will be connected with the Fair Oaks Adventure.

Sealy in Rensselaer has leased 32,000 of offsite warehouse space beginning Fall 2011 through Winter 2012.

Solae in Remington, a processor of soy protein concentrate power and soy lecithin oil food ingredients, is leasing 18,000 square feet of offsite warehouse space.

Terborg Distributing of Demotte constructed a new 13,000 square food headquarters/warehouse facility that opened in February 2012. The company is a beverage distributor.

Wilson Industrial Sales Company of Rensselaer is constructing a new 10,000 square foot corporate headquarters west of the I-65 SR 114 intersection. They are relocating from Newton County.

About half of these have been mentioned in previous posts and about half have not been.