Infrastructure progresses at industrial park
Street paving begins soon; businesses express interest in land

By Eric O'Link, News Editor, Monticello Times Newspaper
[Article Published Sept. 7, 2005]

Members of the Monticello Industrial Development Committee gathered briefly Tuesday morning at the edge of Co. Rd. 39 to survey the fruits of their labor. The roadside where the group met is soon to become an intersection. An extension of Chelsea Road is already graded from 90th Street, past Gould Chevrolet and Denny Hecker's, northwest to Co. Rd. 39. Roger Dalbec, a WSB & Associates engineering technician working on the project, gave the group some good news: Curbs along Chelsea Road were scheduled to be poured Thursday; paving was set to begin at the end of next week.

“We’re a month ahead of schedule,” Dalbec said.

The Chelsea Road project, scheduled to be completed by the end of October, is part of infrastructure improvements in the area designed to support development of Monticello Business Center, the city’s new industrial park. The city purchased 120 acres south of the Chelsea Road extension from John Chadwick and James Bowers last December with the intent of marketing it to industries. That marketing process is now underway, and the city is nearing its first land sale, said Ollie Koropchak, the city’s economic development director.

“We should have a purchase agreement signed within the next week on an 8.6-acre piece of property, and I am working with other companies,” she said. “It’s definitely been a lot more interest than we’ve had in the last two to three years.”

A new home for industry

There has not been much interest until recently because the city stopped marketing its industrial land a couple of years ago. That’s because, except for a few parcels, the city no longer had space to offer interested companies, Koropchak said.

Meanwhile, Monticello’s Industrial Development Committee (IDC) was already working on a solution. Wanting to make sure that the city continues to have land available for industrial development, the IDC worked with the city and the city’s Housing Redevelopment Authority to set aside money each year for the purchase of new industrial land. That fund’s balance was nearly $1 million by last December, Koropchak said.
Almost three years ago, Koropchak, two members of the IDC and two from the HRA formed a committee to investigate land for a new industrial park. After considering four sites along I-94 and one south of Monticello where the Featherstone development is now located, and after having the city investigate the cost of infrastructure improvements at each site, the committee narrowed its focus to the Chadwick property west of 90th Street. Negotiations for the sale took about a year, Koropchak said.

The city purchased the property in December; its $1 million investment secured 35 acres, with the remaining 85 acres on contract for deed. Now, the marketing is underway. Koropchak has assembled a committee to sell the idea of Monticello Business Center to interested companies. That campaign includes a Web site– www.monticelloland.com– and a billboard along eastbound I-94 near Rogers.

Industrial Land for $1.00

Both the Web site and the billboard advertise a deal to potential businesses: land for $1 a square foot with no assessments and no trunk fees. The offer does have some strings attached, with the benefit of the park and community in mind.

“We have developed a set of criteria that a business needs to meet in order to get that $1 a square foot with no assessments and no trunk fees,” Koropchak said. “It’s based on job creation and wage levels.”

The IDC committee also considers building size, she explained. Based on the formula, the marketing committee informs businesses how many acres they are eligible for. And not every company is eligible–some will not qualify.

“People on the committees recognize we may be turning down some people because of what we’re looking for,” Koropchak said. “But we also feel that Monticello is a good location on I-94 and with its amenities, we’re hopeful that we can obtain our objective.”

While any qualified business is welcome in Monticello Business Center, Koropchak added that the city hoped to see manufacturing industry, specifically medical device manufacturing or precision machine shops, move to the park.

“In particular the interest in getting good-paying jobs into the community,” she said.

Protecting value, look

She added that the park was created with covenants to promote certain types of construction and discourage others. No metal buildings will be allowed in the park; businesses must irrigate their lawns and keep all storage indoors. Koropchak said the covenants are designed not only to preserve a well-kept park appearance, but also to protect the investment each business has in its property.

“We’re hoping it’s looked at in terms of a value for their return on their investment by having these covenants,” she said.

The park also has conduits installed underneath the new roads for the eventual addition of a fiber optic network, should the city or a private communications company decide to build one. A committee, led by city council member Wayne Mayer, is exploring the costs of installing fiber optics throughout Monticello. Koropchak said such a network would give Monticello Business Center a distinct marketing advantage. She said one of the companies she has visited did ask about the availability of a fiber optic network.

The aforementioned eight acres of land in the new park are being sold to Dahlheimer Distributing. The company is being relocated from its warehouse along Co. Rd. 18 in eastern Monticello to make way for a new retail development adjacent to the city’s new I-94 interchange at Co. Rd. 18. Plans call for Dahlheimer’s new facility to consist of a 54,000-square foot office and distribution center. The business will retain 28 full-time jobs and add three new positions. Koropchak said the committees that have worked on the new park deserve recognition.

“I don’t know that we would have gotten that far without the support of the Industrial Development Committee and the HRA,” she said. “They’ve really been supportive in terms of lobbying the council members.”

And, she said, she is pleased with the new industrial park location just off Interstate 94 in Monticello..

“I’m just happy to have something to finally market, in terms of the City of Monticello,” she said. “It is a new adventure.”

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