WYTHEVILLE, Va. – Over the past two decades, Wythe County has invested over $40 million in the development of Progress Park; an investment that has netted a return of 750 jobs and millions of dollars in additional tax revenue.

In an effort to remain proactive in the ever changing business climate, Wythe leaders say they will begin marketing the county’s premier industrial site in-house.

The idea was first proposed earlier this year, prior to the retirement of longtime Joint Industrial Development Authority (JIDA) director, Dr. Alan Hawthorne.

In a March 2014 letter issued to the chairperson of the JIDA, Wythe County Administrator Cellell Dalton stated, “Wythe County offers to provide the day-to-day oversight of the JIDA activities and staff in order to provide the continuity we feel is essential to the success of the park and other economic centers.”

County leaders say they never received a response from JIDA officials, prompting them to move forward with their plans to market of the county’s industrial development in-house.

According to local officials, marketing the county’s vacant industrial sites at Progress Park will allow the opportunity for the county to best utilize its resources, as well as take the appropriate actions to keep the site at the forefront of potential industries.

The county has already begun taking actions to increase the industrial park’s exposure.

Yesterday, members of the board of supervisors, accompanied by leaders from the Town of Wytheville, met with Lieutenant Governor Ralph Northam at Progress Park. The county says it will unveil a new website dedicated to exclusively showcasing the top tier industrial park to potential buyers within the next two weeks, as well as launch a new advertising campaign aimed at blitzing high profile industry leaders with all the benefits that accompany doing business in Wythe County.

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