Jeffersonville, IN (June 22, 2021) – During its monthly meeting Monday night, the River Ridge Development Authority authorized Executive Director Jerry Acy to negotiate three potential land deals that would bring new developments, investments and jobs to River Ridge Commerce Center in Southern Indiana. In all, the three deals involve the sale of approximately 35 acres at River Ridge Commerce Center to private developers. The sales would generate about $3.2 million in income. The funding would be used for operations and further development to attract companies and jobs to Southern Indiana.
“This is an incredible way to cap off what has already been a great first half of 2021 at the River Ridge Commerce Center,” Acy said. “We are seeing strong demand for industrial property in our area and across the country. Our central location and ease of doing business make us very appealing to developers and companies seeking to expand.”
During the Monday meeting, the RRDA approved the following purchase/sales agreements:
- Sale of 15.4 acres of undeveloped land on Trey Street to an industrial developer. With a sale price of $75,000 per acre, the land deal would generate $1,155,000. The potential size and configuration of the proposed building(s) for the site have not been determined.
- Sale of 11.7 acres of undeveloped land on Logistics Avenue to an industrial developer. With a sale price of $100,000 per acre, the land deal would generate $1,170,000. The interested firm has indicated it intends to build an industrial building on the property totaling approximately 150,000 square feet.
- Sale of 7.9 acres of undeveloped land on Logistics Avenue to an industrial developer. With a sale price of $110,000 per acre, the land deal would generate $869,000. The interested firm has indicated it intends to build an industrial building on the property totaling approximately 100,000 square feet.
“We are excited about all three of these opportunities to bring more jobs and investments to Southern Indiana,” Acy said. “River Ridge had a great year of development activity in 2020, and we are poised for an even better year in 2021 if this pace continues.”
To date this year, River Ridge has announced six potential land sales totaling more than 154 acres for new development. Those sales, including the three approved at the June board meeting, would generate approximately $11.37 million to support operations and continued development activity at River Ridge and add about 1.7 million to 2 million square feet of industrial real estate at River Ridge.
The River Ridge Commerce Center has become a source of major economic development for the Louisville-Southern Indiana region. Serving as home to more than 60 companies with over 10,500 on-site workers, the Commerce Center produced a total of $2.5 billion in economic output in 2020 and supported more than 17,500 regional jobs, according to an annual economic analysis.
Continued investment in infrastructure
In other business, the River Ridge Development Authority approved more than $511,165 in investments for infrastructure projects and equipment to support ongoing development at the River Ridge Commerce.
The list of investments approved by the RRDA included:
- A contract not to exceed $381,665 with HWC Engineering for design services to help expand capacity of water supply to businesses in the commerce center. HWC will perform design services for the construction of 12,000 feet of additional water supply line along South Boundary Patrol Road to International Drive. The additional, 20-inch supply line is needed to increase capacity of the River Ridge water system to 15 million gallons per day. The contract includes topographic survey, geotechnical engineering, preparation and filing of easements, engineering design, permitting and bidding services, and construction administration required to construct the improvements mentioned above.
- A contract not to exceed $129,500 with Strand Associates Inc. for design services related to improvements needed to serve a development site on Paul Garrett Avenue that is being sold for impending development. The contract includes design services for an extension of Paul Garrett Avenue, construction of approximately 2,865 linear feet of sanitary sewer and construction of a 12-inch watermain to serve the property that will be developed. The contract includes engineering design, permitting and bidding services, and construction administration required to construct the improvements.