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Committee endorses Centergy study, forwards $5,000 county partnership to full board
Summary
The Marathon County Economic Development Committee voted to forward a proposal to partner in funding Centergy's target-industry and site-readiness evaluation to the full county board, asking HR Finance to identify an exact funding source.
The Marathon County Economic Development Committee voted to forward a request from Centergy to partner in funding a regional target-industry and site-readiness evaluation for consideration by the full county board.
Centergy Chief Executive Officer Angel Laidlaw told the committee the initiative, to be conducted in partnership with Site Selection Group, will identify which industries best fit Central Wisconsin and assess the readiness of candidate properties. Laidlaw said the full study costs $125,000 (about $130,000 including travel) and that Centergy has asked county partners to contribute $5,000 each so at least one property in every county can receive an on-site assessment by a site selector. "Right now the whole study, is $125,000 but $130,000 if you include travel," Laidlaw said.
Laidlaw described the project as two parts: a market/industry analysis to define target sectors and a boots-on-the-ground assessment of five to six properties that will receive pass/fail grades and steps for remediation to make them marketable. After the study is complete, Centergy plans an annual developer tour inviting clients and site selectors to view certified or improved properties; the study will be publicly available for municipalities and economic development partners to use.
Supervisors asked about the kinds of sites sought, track record, and partner commitments. Laidlaw said properties could be greenfield, brownfield or existing buildings and typically are larger parcels (for example, 20 to 100 acres or more). She said Adams County Economic Development Corporation agreed to front its share if county funding were not available; Centergy would confirm formal county contributions in follow-up conversations.
County staff member Lance (last name not specified on the record) told the committee he would review special-projects and 2025 economic-development funds to find a $5,000 contribution and recommended identifying a funding source through HR Finance if the committee wanted to proceed this year. The committee ultimately moved to forward the Centergy request to the full board for consideration; the motion was seconded (Rosenberg and Hagen appeared as seconders at different points in discussion), and the committee voted unanimously to forward the item.
The committee did not adopt a final county contribution amount in committee; it forwarded the request to the full board with direction that HR Finance identify and recommend a funding source.
Where it came from: Centergy (regional economic development organization) presented the study proposal and cost breakdown; the committee debated readiness, property types, and partner contributions and voted to forward the proposal to the full board for consideration and funding-source identification.
Votes at a glance: The committee voted to forward Centergy's request to the full county board for consideration; the motion passed unanimously (no roll-call tally recorded in the minutes).
