Stark County officials will soon look into building one or more industrial sites within the county as well as southern Dunn County.
Planning for the sites will be easier since the United States Commerce Department Economic Development Administration announced Tuesday it was granting $45,000 to the Stark County Development Corporation to develop a plan.
Stark County Development Corporation Executive Vice President Gaylon Baker said there is a need for an additional industrial park, which would join two already in Dickinson.
There are industrial parks on the west and east sides of town, Baker said. "... what we also have is a lot of industry development happening north and in scattered places around the community," he said.
Baker said the corporation, working with the Roosevelt-Custer Regional Council for Development, applied for the grant late last year.
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"We want to get everyone on the same page as far as what constitutes a good industrial site," Baker said. "There are various sites that are zoned industrial around the area.
"We want to bring in a consultant to study those, take a look at them and find out if the essentials are there for industrial development."
A good industrial site would include roads, water, sewer and high voltage electrical service among other items, Baker said.
Baker said an additional concern would be separating residential from industrial.
Rod Landblom with Roosevelt-Custer said they will hire an engineering firm to conduct the 10-week study, which could begin in a few weeks.
"We're open to more than one site," Landblom said. "As long as we're doing the exercise we might as well take a look at the whole county."
Southern Dunn County will also be included in the study, he added.
At this point, Baker said he is not sure how many potential jobs a new industrial park could bring in.
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"We hope it brings in a significant amount and an incentive for industry to locate here or to expand here," Baker said.
He also wants to make sure any concerned residents are heard before a park is established, he said.
