LOUDON — A $1.5 million federal grant has been awarded for
infrastructure improvements at the Sugar Limb Industrial Park in
Loudon County.
The grant, facilitated through the Appalachian Regional
Commission, will be used to build a power substation that will
support the Ceramica Del Conca tile production facility
currently under construction at the industrial park.
The commission is a Washington, D.C.-based state-federal
partnership that works to create opportunities for
self-sustaining economic development. Officials from Loudon
County and the city of Loudon joined state and federal officials
in announcing the grant last week.
“It’s great to see clean economic growth in the county,” said
county Commissioner David Meers.
The city and county provided another $1.6 million toward the
total $3 million plus cost of the power station. The state
provided funding for a road leading to the site, which should
employ about 180 after a second planned expansion, said Pat
Phillips president of the Loudon Economic Development
Association. Phillips said his office along with city and county
officials have been working on the Del Conca deal since 2008
“This is a co-investment strategy,” said Matt Erskine, Deputy
Assistant Secretary for Economic Development for U.S. Economic
Development Agency.
Since 2007 the EDA has invested about $44 million in Tennessee,
which has resulted in the creation of new job, particularly
those in the manufacturing sector, Erskine said. Overseas
investment in the U.S. is on the rise, he said.
“Manufacturing is a critical jobs generator for the middle
class. New manufacturing jobs pay about 38 percent more than
other jobs,” he said.
Loudon was chosen as the site for the new facility based on
proximity to the east coast markets, raw materials and a good
labor force with a strong work ethic, according to Paolo
Mularoni, president of U.S. operations of the Italian company.
“This new power plant will support us with a consistent,
reliable source of power,” Mularoni said.
The new facility is expected to be operational by January of
2014.