BLOCK GRANT COULD CREATE OVER 50 JOBS IN JACKSON

JACKSON - City officials say if a $500,000 Community Development Block Grant application is funded, the money will be used to build a new elevated water tower and water main that would serve both of Jackson's industrial parks.

City Administrator Carl Talley said the improvements to the water supply infrastructure will also result in the initial creation of at least 50 new jobs, and possibly more.

Talley said the plan calls for the construction of the elevated water tower that will be located in the city's west side industrial park, on Route PP, south Highway 72.

The city will also construct a water main that will connect the Route PP industrial park with the Lee Avenue industrial site, located along the St. Louis, Iron Mountain & Southern Railway Company's railroad tracks, just south of the Highway 61-34-25 intersection.

"The water tower will serve both industrial parks through the new water main," Talley explained. "The primary reason for this project is to increase the fire protection capability at both locations. The water tower and water main will increase water pressure and capacity at both locations. That will allow existing industries in both industrial parks to install sprinkler systems, if needed. It will also create an atmosphere for developing new industry in the future."

To receive the grant, the city has to show that the water improvement project will result in new jobs or industry. "A successful block grant is contingent on certain investments by the city government and the private sector," said Talley. "In the private sector this includes the number of jobs that will be created as a result of the improvements, new equipment purchased, and other capital investments."

Talley said American Linen Supply of Jackson, Tenn. is playing a key role in the grant application.

The linen firm opened a distribution center in the Route PP industrial park several years ago. At the time, company officials said they planned to expand the operation in the future by constructing an industrial laundry plant that will need a dependable source of a large quantity of water, something the new water tower and water mains will provide, in addition to fire protection.

"If the grant is funded, it means at least 50 new jobs, but we're hoping for a lot more, perhaps as many as 250 new jobs over a period of time," said Talley.

The grant application is near completion, and should be ready to submit in about three weeks, said Talley. Authorization to apply for the grant was given last August by the Jackson Board of Aldermen.

However, the preparation was delayed until data was received from one of the companies that will guarantee new jobs will be created as a result of the improvements. That information was finally received by the city about two weeks ago.

Talley said Mitch Robinson of the Greater Cape Girardeau Area Industrial Recruitment Association and the Southeast Missouri Regional Planning and Economic Development Commission are assisting the city in preparing the grant application.

After the grant is submitted, the city should know whether or not it will be funded around the end of the year. "These grant applications move rather fast. We may know something before the end of the year, or sometime after the first of the new year," said Talley.

If the grant application is funded, Talley said the city is ready to proceed with plans and specifications for the water tower and water mains. He said the project could be ready for bidding by early spring. "If everything goes alright and our grant application is funded, this would be a 1994 summer project," he added.

Talley said Jackson's matching share of the $500,000 grant has not been determined at this time, but it could range from $100,000 to $125,000. Said Talley: "It could be 50 percent of the total grant or matching dollar for dollar."