A new, 300-acre industrial park in Marshall County has secured its first tenant. Software and IT services provider United Systems in Benton is relocating and expanding operations in the Southwest One Industrial Park.
Governor Matt Bevin’s office said in a release on Thursday the company will build a 20,000 square foot facility and that the $5.3 million investment will create 50 high paying jobs.
United Systems has been in Marshall County since 1981 and currently employs 36 people. The company provides technical services and specializes in software development and IT for utilities and local governments with 1,000 customers across 13 states, according to Bevin’s office.
Company president Scott Waldrop said in a release locating to the park fits well with their objectives. “We have been steadily growing as a company and have expanded beyond capacity at our current location. We are looking to grow even more as we expand nationally. So, we began looking at various options.”
Kentucky Lake Economic Development Authority Director Josh Tubbs said having a space to show companies where they could locate was imperative when trying to attract businesses to the area.
“You have to have a product to put in front of a company before you’re even considered,” Tubbs said. “This is significant for us, historically speaking this is the first multi-tenant industrial park that we’ve had in this community.”
Judge/Executive Kevin Neal said having a tenant will help when Tubbs markets the park to other companies. “He’s got not only an existing product- he’s got a company that he can get testimonies from as far as the location and what they like about it,” Neal said.
Neal said the Southwest One Industrial Park will be marketed towards small manufacturing companies. He said the park has been three years in the making and cost $2.4 million. He said several partner organizations helped secure funding, including the Paducah Area Community Reuse Organization and the Delta Regional Authority.
Neal said the Marshall County Industrial Development Authority was established as a committee by the fiscal court earlier this year and will own and manage the industrial park.
Tubbs said he believes the park will have a major impact on the future of Marshall County.
“With good management and good leadership and coming together as a community, this park will affect generations of Marshall Countians to come,” Tubbs said. “I think that’s important to recognize because we hear a lot of discussion about ‘how do we leave it better for our kids, how do we keep our kids here?’… and we’ve taken action where I believe action needed to be taken.”
The Southwest One Industrial Park is located off of US Highway 641, within one mile of I-69 and seven miles from the intersection of I-24 and I-69.
This story has been updated to include corrections to the square footage of the building and the correct name of the industrial park.
