Today, Gov. Andy Beshear announced nearly $8.5 million in state funding to support site and building development projects in Laurel, Madison, Monroe, Pendleton, Russell and Scott counties, as well as a regional project in Muhlenberg County with support from Daviess, Hopkins, McLean and Ohio counties.
“This latest round of funding has been a tremendous success and clearly shows Kentucky’s commitment to job growth through site and building development,” said Gov. Beshear. “Our site development and speed-to-market initiatives are crucial to the commonwealth’s long-term success in attracting quality companies to locate in our communities, bringing with them exciting new job opportunities. I am proud to see these projects moving forward and look forward to seeing the businesses they attract.”
The Kentucky Product Development Initiative, or KPDI, provides funding for local communities to boost investment in site and building upgrades to support future, well-paying jobs and economic growth across Kentucky.
The Laurel County Fiscal Court, on behalf of the London-Laurel County Economic Development Authority, is continuing the development of the McDaniel Industrial Park by extending utilities including gas, water, electric, sewer and fiber to the site. The London-Laurel County Economic Development Authority is providing a 20% match to the KPDI funding.
The city of Richmond is acquiring approximately 190 acres in the heart of Madison County, adjacent to the existing Richmond Industrial Park South III. The zoning will be changed to industrial, making the land able to be developed quickly using the existing road network and utility infrastructure already in place in the industrial park. The new site will be called Richmond Industrial Park South IV.
The Monroe County Fiscal Court, in partnership with the Monroe County Industrial Development Authority, is conducting due diligence on a site on Kentucky Highway 163 to determine suitability for a new industrial park.
The Pendleton County Industrial Development Authority is planning critical due-diligence work needed to advance the Pendleton County Commerce Park, including site mapping, environmental studies and other assessments necessary to move toward Build-Ready status.
The Russell County Fiscal Court, on behalf of the Russell County Industrial Development Authority, is completing due-diligence studies on the Rexroat Property. The studies will determine the feasibility of the site and decide whether it should be acquired as an expansion to the Lake Cumberland Regional Industrial Park.
The Scott County Fiscal Court, on behalf of the city of Georgetown, is developing the remaining acreage at the Lanes Run Business Park. The work will include interior roadway, utility and regional drainage extensions, as well as site grading in order to broaden client diversification and create larger sites within the park.
The Muhlenberg County Fiscal Court and Paradise Park Regional Industrial Development Authority, with support from Daviess, Hopkins, McLean, Muhlenberg and Ohio counties, is developing a 25-acre site and building at the Paradise Regional Business Park to accommodate future growth and create new jobs for the area.
Currently, $35 million is available for projects entering the due diligence stage in the latest round of KPDI. The projects have been reviewed by a third-party, independent site selection consultant, which evaluated, scored and submitted project recommendations to the Cabinet for Economic Development. The cabinet will consider each project and complete the final stage of due diligence for a recommendation of funding approval by the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority in the coming months. Projects across 25 counties are moving on to the due diligence stage, and the projects announced today are the second round of approvals.
The two rounds of the previous iteration of the initiative – the KPDI Program of 2022 – concluded earlier this year, with 90 projects statewide approved for over $85 million in funding. Including local contributions, these projects are generating over $512 million in investments in Kentucky’s sites and buildings portfolio.
The initiative is a collaboration between the Cabinet for Economic Development and the Kentucky Association for Economic Development (KAED). It provides state support for potential upgrades to sites and buildings across the commonwealth to ensure Kentucky remains a prime location for growing companies across all industry sectors.
Terri Bradshaw, president and CEO of KAED mentioned the overall purpose of the program: “The goal of KPDI is to ensure Kentucky continues to have the necessary tools to compete and win for economic development projects on the national stage. These funds position our local developers to stand out among other competitors and is vital to our long-term economic development strategy. KPDI is already proving to be transformative for Kentucky’s economy. I look forward to continuing to watch it work for our state and to see how it supports these communities.”
To date, Gov. Beshear and the Kentucky General Assembly have approved up to $170 million in funding for the initiative.
Site and building development projects are first evaluated by an independent consultant based upon all facets a prospective company would consider, from workforce availability, access to all infrastructure and detailed information on costs associated with development. In turn, these projects will generate increased economic development opportunities and job creation for Kentucky residents. The initiative furthers the efforts of the pilot PDI program, which was established in 2019 and provided nearly $7 million in state funding for 20 site development projects statewide. Companies have announced economic development projects at 10 of the locations funded during the pilot PDI program projecting $4 billion of capital investment and 3,500 new, full-time jobs.
Investment in site development throughout Kentucky builds on the best five-year period for economic growth in state history.
Since the beginning of his administration, Gov. Beshear has announced more than 1,200 private-sector new-location and expansion projects totaling over $36 billion in announced investments, creating close to 62,000 jobs. This is the highest investment figure secured during the tenure of any governor in the commonwealth’s history and $15 billion more than the next highest total.
The robust job creation has been accompanied by rising wages across the commonwealth. Since 2022, the average incentivized hourly wage has topped $26 in three consecutive years for the first time.
Gov. Beshear has announced some of the largest economic development projects in state history, which have solidified Kentucky as the electric vehicle battery production capital of the United States: Ford Motor Co. and SK On’s transformative $5.8 billion, 5,000-job BlueOval SK Battery Park in Hardin County; AESC’s $2 billion, 2,000-job gigafactory project in Warren County; Toyota’s $1.3 billion investment in Scott County; and Shelbyville Battery Manufacturing’s $712 million investment, creating 1,572 jobs in Shelby County, among others.
The Governor’s administration also secured the largest General Fund budget surplus and Rainy Day Fund. In 2023, Kentucky recorded over 2 million jobs filled for the first time ever and has stayed above that number ever since.
Kentucky also secured rating increases from major credit rating agencies Fitch Ratings, S&P Global Ratings and Moody’s Investors Service.
Site Selection magazine recently ranked Kentucky in the top five nationally and second in the South Central region for economic development projects per capita in its 2024 Governor’s Cup rankings. Last April, Site Selection placed Kentucky second in the South Central region and in the top 10 nationally in its 2024 Prosperity Cup ranking, which recognizes state-level economic development agencies for their success in landing capital investment projects.
Gov. Beshear also announced a new initiative, called New Kentucky Home, to increase economic investment, attain and attract talent, and increase tourism across the state.
Learn more about KPDI at kpdi.ky.gov.