Rush County Economic & Community Development Corporation Executive Director Greg Griffin recently received good news from the Indiana Economic Development Corporation.

As a result of the ECDC having made application to the IEDC for assistance in attracting new business and industry to Rush County, the Rushville/Rush County North Industrial Park has been designated as “shovel ready.”

Only eight sites in the state earned the “shovel ready” title. The move paves the way for companies to quickly locate their businesses on property that is ready for development.

The IEDC says the title is the namesake of the state’s Shovel Ready program that identifies sites which have undergone extensive title work, proof of ownership, legal and environmental review and that qualify for expedited permitting with state regulatory agencies.

“This is good news for Rush County,” Griffin said.

Benefits of being recognized as shovel ready include assistance in marketing Rush County to prospective companies and the availability of a variety of matching grants and other economic development tools, he added.

“With more and more companies looking for sites where they can have a shovel in the ground as quickly as possible, this program gives Indiana an advantage when it comes to competing with other states for new investments and new jobs,” Nathan Feltman, Secretary of Commerce and CEO of the IEDC, said. “This is another vital tool in our economic development toolbox that will give Indiana the edge when attracting new and promising investment to the state.”

The eight new sites join the 12 others certified during the state’s pilot program of Shovel Ready in 2006.

Designed to lower the cost of site development, improve the efficiency of state permitting and enhance the marketability of sites statewide, the program has already begun to achieve success, Brad Moore of the IEDC said.

In addition to Rushville, the other new shovel ready sites are located in Anderson, Franklin, Ligonier, Ossian, South Bend, Switzerland County and Whitley County.

To learn more about the Shovel Ready program visit the IEDC Web site at www.iedc.in.gov.

Rushville Republican Managing Editor Kevin L. Green can be contacted at (765) 932-2222 ext. 108 or via e-mail at kevin.green@cnhimedia.com. Add a comment to this story at www.rushvillerepublican.com.