It was a big year for Maury County and its most overarching narrative — new business.
This year saw win after win when it came to economic expansion for the county and the trend is likely far from over, with much of that news revolving around the county’s once quiet Cherry Glen Industrial Park just north of Mt. Pleasant.
The Maury County Chamber and Economic Alliance, a key economic development point of contact for the county, reports the creation of 381 new local jobs in the past 12 months, a total of $135.9 million in capital investment and a $14 million increase in local payroll, diversifying the county’s workforce into new industries and bolstering those that are already in the region.
“It has been a very exciting year,” said Wil Evans, president of the Maury County Chamber and Economic Alliance. “Looking at this year, while we did see two automotive announcements, related to GM and Toyota, we also saw new industries in food and ceramics.”
In total, the Maury County Chamber and Economic Alliance made six major announcements this year, as opposed to three major projects in 2017, with unemployment still below the national average and nearing some of the best numbers in the state.
With the latest unemployment numbers at 2.9 percent, this year has seen an average unem-ployment in the county between 2.5 and 3 percent, below the most recent national unemployment rate of 3.7 percent. The local numbers near that of the state’s lowest unemployment rate of 2.5 percent in Williamson County.
“As we look ahead, we look to continue to grow the workforce,” Evans said.
This year, The Tennessee Department of Labor named Maury County the top county in the state for manufacturing job growth and the 20th in the nation.
“With these recent announcements, our pipeline remains full for 2019,” Evans said. “We are now looking at 21 projects for the county, a total of $3 billion in capital investment and just under 6,000 jobs.”
In February, The Doug Jeffords Company, a family-owned Williamson County manufacturer of seasoning and spices, announced it would relocate its operations to the Cherry Glen Industrial Park, taking over an existing 77,000-square foot facility, previously home to ASCO Numatics, which closed its Mt. Pleasant location and moved 110 jobs to South Carolina in March 2017.
The move brought 35 positions to the county and $4 million in investment.
In May, Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe and Smalticeram USA, Inc. officials announced that the company will locate new operations to Cherry Glen.
The ceramic and tile ink, glaze and pigment producer and distributor said it will invest $4 million and create 26 new jobs for the county, moving into a 50,000 square foot facility constructed by the county to attract companies to the park in Mt. Pleasant.
A $1,325,000 joint venture between Maury County, the Mt. Pleasant Power System, the City of Mt. Pleasant and the Tennessee Valley Authority, the building was constructed using taxpayer dollars with the intention of selling the structures to a manufacturer or large industrial company, with construction beginning in 2016.
“Smalticeram has been in business for almost 50 years in the sector of industrial ceramic. With the opening of a branch in Mt. Pleasant, it will take us a step further in the program of internationalization,” President of Smalticeram Carlo Alberto Ovi said. “Today, the market of North America has become strategic for our group and it offers us excellent opportunities. We are sure Tennessee will reflect at best all of our needs and we will do anything to make our finest contribution for the growth of the Mt. Pleasant.”
To the north, auto components manufacture Faurecia Interior Systems broke ground on a new Spring Hill facility in August, bringing 143 new jobs in a $30 million investment to southern Middle Tennessee.
Formerly known as Project Field of Dreams, the new plant expands the region’s auto manufacturing base including General Motors, Comprehensive Logists and Magna seating, giving employees an average salary of $42,206.
“We are excited to expand our presence in North America to the Spring Hill community of Tennessee,” Donald Hampton Jr., Faurecia’s president of Faurecia’s Interior Systems in North America told The Daily Herald. “Exceptional partnerships with community leadership, and the highly motivated and skilled workforce in this state, made this opportunity possible. I know that together we will continue to deliver the best in high-quality products to our customers.”
The 145,000 square-foot facility, which encompasses phase one of the project at 3555 Cleburne Road, is estimated to be complete sometime next year, and will focus on manufacturing door panel assemblies. Phase two will expand the building to almost double the initial size.
Also in August, the Maury County Commission approved an agreement that will bring a 110-room Courtyard Marriott to the corner of Bear Creek Pike and Nashville Highway by 2020 and provide tax breaks to developer Hunt Properties in order to incentivize the construction.
The $18.5 million project will replace the vacant Polk Motel, a liquor store, doughnut shop and title-loan business at the busy intersection.
“It is great for us to become a part of this community,” Developer David Hunt of Jackson said following the unanimous vote. “Columbia is a tremendous market. This community is growing and doing amazingly well because of leadership like yours and the leadership we have in the city.”
Organizers say the complex will host more than 150 events throughout the year.
Four hotels have built locations near the Bear Creek exit of Interstate 65 since 2010. A fifth is under construction behind Stan’s restaurant. The Courtyard by Marriott will be closer to downtown for tourists headed to the Ridley Sports Complex and the city’s refurbished, vibrant downtown.
“There is opportunity to live and work in the same community, and we are seeing the economic and retail growth,” Evans said.
Although the new hotel is not a Maury Alliance project, Evans said the office did consult with the city on the deal.
“That is a big boom that we are seeing along with the main industrial sector,” Evans said.
This year, the local chamber has seen a 5 percent growth in membership numbers, many of which are new local small businesses, Evans said.
In October, the Solvay Group announced it would invest $22 million in its existing Mt. Pleasant facility over the next five years.
The company, headquartered in Brussels, Belgium with around 26,800 employees in 61 countries, makes specialty products and chemicals used in planes, cars, batteries, smart and medical devices, as well as in mineral and oil and gas extraction.
The Mt. Pleasant facility on Mt. Joy Road produces specialty products for the copper mining industry.
An advanced materials and specialty chemicals company, committed to developing chemistry that addresses key societal challenges, Solvay innovates and partners with customers worldwide in many diverse end markets. Its products are used in planes, cars, batteries, smart and medical devices, as well as in mineral and oil and gas extraction, enhancing efficiency and sustainability.
The site has 108 employees producing products for specialty applications.
Mt. Pleasant also saw a new anonymous project confirmed, Evans said.
Known as Project Window, the secretive new business which wishes to remain anonymous due to its competitors, created 27 jobs and $9.5 million in investment in the region.
On Halloween, Japanese auto components maker Fuel Total Systems made another major splash to the local economy announcing it would create 150 new jobs and invest approximately $60.9 million at a new 110,000-square-foot facility in the Cherry Glen Industrial Park.
The news was shared like no other local project this year as Toyota of North America Vice President Noby Tanaka celebrated the new plant singing Queen’s “We Are The Champions.”
FTS is a manufacturer of automotive plastic fuel tank systems and related automotive components. The company focuses on the development, design, manufacturing, and sale of fuel tanks, appurtenant parts, as well as engine and hybrid components. The manufacturer is based in Japan and also has an operation in Kentucky.
The new 110,000-square-foot facility in the Cherry Glen Industrial park, set to complete its first phase of construction in August 2019, will supply a new Toyota/Mazda plant 90 minutes away in Huntsville, Alabama, which which is planned to begin production in 2021.
At the announcement, now former Mt. Pleasant Mayor Jim Bailey referred to the park as a waking giant.
“Cherry Glen Park has been a sleeping giant for years,” said Bailey, who also previously served as county mayor from 2002 until 2014.
“One of my greatest disappointments as county mayor was that we did not put this park up in the time that we should have,” he continued. “But today, I am so pleased that FTS has acquired this property.”
The expansive, more than 500-acre property just north of Mt. Pleasant on Highway 43, was acquired by the county in the early 2000s from a farming family.
“Mt. Pleasant is about having a ready workforce,” said Rolfe during the project’s reveal. “They (FTS) looked across the state and they picked your community, and at the end of the day, it was simply the feel of this community. That speaks volumes about Mt. Pleasant, the Columbia area and Maury County, Tennessee.”
After a long stint of inactivity and the groundbreaking of the 2016 spec building, the county owned industrial park did not see much movement except for the departure of SCO Numatics in 2017.
“These recent announcements are a sign of things to come,” Evans said.