The recent sale by Cookeville and Putnam County officials of a site inside the Highlands Business Park highlights the decreasing available inventory.
Highlands Economic Partnership Vice President Adam Poe said the business park currently has six or seven remaining lots ranging from 4.7 acres to 24 acres.
“The remaining pieces are a bit more undulating, they need a bit more groundwork but they are still viable,” Poe said. “And they’re perfect for businesses that need a 25,000 to 50,000 square foot facility with around 60 employees and that’s really what we target on a business recruitment front are the jobs that are going to pay a very high wage that are very tech forward.”
Poe said these spaces will attract the types of business they want to see set up shop locally. Poe said the current recruitment focus looks at companies that employ approximately 40 to 60 people.
Local leaders said there is additional land around the park that could be purchased.
“The area of the Highlands Business Park probably won’t be maxed out as it is for the next five years and so I’m sure that that conversation will be coming up you know, pretty soon to talk about what are the the growth opportunities there,” Poe said.
Poe said the partnership utilizes a specific recruiting process to seek out companies that promise steady jobs, high wages and cutting-edge technology.
“One thing that has been very intentional is the types of jobs that we’re recruiting now are the jobs that are going to be here for the next 50 years,” Poe said. “The ones that can’t be automated, the ones that embrace technology. And so the companies that are going to be moving in are going to be sustainable jobs. And that’s a really, really important thing is the city of Cookeville and Putnam County and really the Highlands region continue to grow and more individuals from outside of the state or outside of that region move into it, it’s important that we have jobs that pay a great wage, that create a great quality of life, that allow people to go and enjoy the things that we have right here.”
Poe said a developer named Hollingsworth recently purchased a lot for a custom project known as Project Green. Poe said this specific facility would be constructed to the exact specifications of a prospective company rather than being built as a general speculative building.
“Every announcement that we have had on an industrial front has been because it’s been an intentional recruitment that has taken place there,” Poe said. “Now, you know you see like a Culver’s coming to town or you see a gas station coming to town, those companies are going to come because of the growth of this area, right? But a lot of the businesses that have or will be announced over the next year are all because of intentional efforts because we want them here, because those jobs are going to last for a very long time.”
Poe said the new custom-made working space is emblematic of the types of efforts they are looking to make in attracting high-quality jobs in the area.
“If Hollingsworth is able to seal a partnership with a company that they would be doing this build-to-suit building for, you know, it’s going to be a significant amount of jobs, I believe that it’s 188 jobs at great wages that would be coming into the business park,” Poe said. “And these jobs would be requiring all pretty much all skilled labor, and that’s an important piece of being able to pay that high wage is having opportunities for people in the trades and in advanced manufacturing to be able to have an opportunity to grow.”
Poe said the region maintains a competitive advantage for industrial recruitment due to the local educational ecosystem. Poe said incoming companies plan to leverage graduates from Tennessee Tech, Vol State and TCAT for roles in engineering, mechatronics and skilled trades.
“For every one project that’s announced we’ve probably turned down five companies that were interested in coming here,” Poe said. “And the reason why is because, you know, the wages weren’t great, or it was a ton of jobs that we just didn’t feel comfortable committing to for the companies. It’s not fair to the companies, not fair to the community.”
