PLYMOUTH, Ind. (Sept. 15, 2020) — Today, community leaders and regional representatives gathered for a groundbreaking ceremony in Plymouth to celebrate the beginning construction of the latest “Manufacturing Center” in Marshall County.

Developing readily available buildings for industry has proven to be a successful strategy that Marshall County has capitalized on in the past. Manufacturing centers are a unique solution to spurring industrial growth for our area. Marshall County Economic Development Corporation is at the forefront of a collaboration between Marshall County and the City of Plymouth to develop the area’s latest Manufacturing Center.

“Marshall County’s support of these manufacturing centers is a key activity in developing the infrastructure necessary for the South Bend – Elkhart region to increase its industrial base, ultimately increasing the share of employment in higher pay traded industry clusters, growing per capita income and stimulating the economy,” said South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership President and CEO, Regina Emberton. “Although ample land is one of the region’s resources, too few buildings are readily available to help company growth. We can help business expansion and relocation requirements by demonstrating that we have the site and building infrastructure in place to attract investment.”

This Manufacturing Center is one of the 26 projects Regional Cities Initiative projects approved for funding by the South Bend – Elkhart Regional Development Authority (RDA) and is part of the region’s Smart Connected Communities plan, which was awarded $42 million in state grant funding to support projects located in Elkhart, Marshall, and St. Joseph counties. Totaling nearly $400 million in quality of place investments, 18 of the projects are complete, four are currently under construction, and four more are in the planning phase.

“This development is the result of significant effort and collaboration with the South Bend – Elkhart Regional Development Authority, Marshall County Council, City of Plymouth, Plymouth Redevelopment Commission, Marshall County Economic Development Corporation, Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) and many others”, said RDA Vice Chairman and University of Notre Dame Executive Engineer-in-Residence, John DeSalle. “We cannot thank you enough for your dedication to the growth and prosperity of this region’s workforce and economy.”

Marshall County has perfected their system with this third Manufacturing Center. Other successes attributed to the Manufacturing Center Initiatives resulted in attracting Pretzels, Inc. to Plymouth and the large expansion projects they have brought to the community. The second Manufacturing Center constructed in Argos has been purchased by Sequel Wire and Cable. Both facilities have undergone extensive expansion from their original construction and have added equipment into production.

The Plymouth Manufacturing Center, located at 2809 Jim Neu Drive, Plymouth, will feature easy access to interstate highways U.S. 30 and U.S. 31. The building, slated for completion by Spring 2021, will be 43,000 square feet, expandable to over 100,000 square feet with many of the features businesses will require including access to high speed fiber.

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About South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership
The South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership is a collaboration of the economic development partners from 47 smart connected communities in Northern Indiana and Southwest Michigan. The Regional Partnership focuses on a long-term systemic approach to advance the region’s economy by aligning the efforts of various stakeholders around five key areas: Educating a world-class WORKFORCE, Recruiting and retaining great TALENT, Attracting and growing new economy companies in complement to our remarkably strong manufacturing INDUSTRIES, Promoting INCLUSION and sparking opportunities for minorities and Helping ENTREPRENEURS thrive. The Regional Partnership seeks to unify and collaborate so that together, the communities across the region to work together to achieve what cannot be done individually. For more information about the Regional Partnership, visit SouthBendElkhart.org.

Media Contact
Regina Emberton
South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership
574.344.4686
remberton@southbendelkhart.org