Planting the seed: County, city invest SPLOST funds for Hwy. 411 land purchase, spec buildings planned for site
A joint purchase, using SPLOST funds, of farmland surrounding Bass Ferry Road along U.S. 411 was announced during the Floyd County Commission meeting on Tuesday.
The county commission, city of Rome and Rome Floyd Development Authority secured an option to buy 202.34 acres of land at $20,000.00 per acre from the Braden family, fronting Cartersville Highway.
The total purchase price of $4,196,800 will include the payment for a structure on the property.
“Today’s announcement is the culmination of 40 years of dreaming and planning,” County Commission Chair Wright Bagby said. “I want to extend my thanks to the Braden family for working with us on this project that will plant the seed of economic development and growth along the 411 corridor.”
The property will allow prospective industries the opportunity to locate in the eastern part of Floyd County, nearer I-75.
Plans shown at the commission meeting included three speculative buildings — 475,000 square feet, 425,000 square feet and 360,000 square feet — with room for another 300,0000-square-foot expansion.
In addition to allowing industrial expansion, Bagby said, there’s also a community benefit.
“Our citizens in the unincorporated community will benefit from the extension of water and sewer lines to the area,” Bagby said. “This is another great example of the importance of our SPLOST investments to our entire community.”
The idea is to take advantage of the Rome-Cartersville Development Corridor. Development authority representatives said the properties will be very attractive to new industry or existing industry looking to expand in Floyd County.
“This is an amazing opportunity to finally open up the true potential of the RCDC to be the economic engine it was designed to be,” Rome Floyd County Development Authority Chair Jimmy Byars said.
Land on the eastern portion of the county has been hard to come by, with a majority of it being large family-owned farms, especially along either side of U.S. 411 between Rome and Cartersville.
The purchase will be funded by the 2013 and 2017 special purpose, local option sales tax. Both packages allocated funds for real estate and infrastructure and economic development.
“Having worked the economic development throughout the region for many years, I can tell you that having available industrial land is critically important for us to be able to attract large employers to our community,” Rome Mayor Craig McDaniel.
“I applaud the work of Missy Kendrick and the entire Rome Floyd Development Authority team in securing land to ensure our continued success in industrial recruitment.”