Shovel-ready sites could boost development in Beloit
Excerpted from Beloit Daily News
By Shaun Zinck
Two Beloit city-owned properties are being considered by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) for “shovel ready” certification.
The certification would give would-be business developers more confidence in locating a business in Beloit because an outside firm would have already inspected the site.
The “Ready-Set-Build” project was proposed by Gov. Scott Walker earlier this year as a way to encourage business owners to build in the state. Wisconsin was one of 25 other states that didn’t have “shovel ready” certification.
A study done in 2010 called “Be Bold” showed that the state had a lack of sites that could be immediately developed. Walker then created “Ready-Set-Build” in order to determine sites that are ready to be developed.
The certification eliminates some worry for would-be developers because sites have already been inspected and are ready for development, said Tom Thieding, communications manager for WEDC.
“Certified sites also increase the comfort level of projects considering a region by removing unknowns about a site, and by accelerating the site due diligence and implementation timeline,” Thieding said.
