County concludes historic sale of entire Industrial Park

Earlier this week, Lewis County Commissioners voted to sell the final parcel of county-owned land at the Industrial Park to local businessman, Nick Ramey. Mr. Ramey is purchasing the property in order to expand his company, Cornerstone Health Systems, which provides medical equipment to its customers.

The Industrial Park has sat nearly empty for 24 years, and many residents believed the property would never sell. However, within the last year a variety of local business owners began seeking parcels of land there to expand their companies, and community leaders were happy to accommodate them.

Those joining Mr. Raney in making these historic land purchases at the Industiral Park include Darren Breaud, Ray Brewer, Daniel Jobbitt, Kevin King, Summertown Metals, and Chris Trull. They purchased their parcels for a combined total of $610,520. Lewis County Government has placed that money in a Reserve Account, and it is strictly designated for future Industrial and Economic Development purposes.

Lewis County will benefit from this monumental deal in several ways. First, the county now has over $600,000 in the bank that is drawing interest until it can be reinvested in certain eligible projects.

Next, property tax collections from these businesses are projected to generate tens of thousands of dollars in new revenue each year going forward. And finally, these companies are expecting to create approximately 250 new jobs. That will help many families, while stimulating our local economy.

Lewis County Mayor Jonah Keltner stated, "I'm very excited about the sale of our Industrial Park, and appreciate these local business owners choosing to expand their companies here in our community. This is proof that our pro-business climate, low taxes, and quality of life in Lewis County is great for business, and enables job growth for our community.

Also, these land sales wouldn't have occurred without a successful partnership between many local officials. I'm very thankful to our County Commissioners, the Industrial Development Board, the City Planning Commission, and the City of Hohenwald for working together and putting our community in a position to make such a historic economic development deal," Keltner concluded.