The Certified In Wisconsin® Program, offered in partnership by WEDC and Deloitte Consulting, is accepting new applications for industrial parcels of 20 acres or more as being “development-ready.”
WEDC introduced the Certified In Wisconsin Program in 2012 to help spur development of commercial properties in communities throughout the state. This program pre-certifies industrial sites as development-ready. Working with WEDC, communities can obtain site certification for properties at a much lower cost than they would pay to pursue the designation on their own through an independent consultant.
A Certified Site designation indicates that a wide range of concerns have been considered—environmental and geological factors, transportation access, utility and infrastructure capacity, zoning, property rights—and that the site is ready for industrial development. WEDC works with Deloitte to evaluate sites to determine if they are ready for development and meet certification requirements. By certifying that these sites meet common basic requirements for development, WEDC provides assurances for potential companies eager to get their projects completed quickly, and in the process makes Wisconsin as a whole more competitive when it comes to attracting new projects.
“Certified Site designation is a fast track for your property to get the attention of site selectors and real estate developers,” says Zanya Bugri, real estate and location specialist for WEDC. “WEDC subsidizes part of the cost for the sites that are chosen to move forward. We recognize that this process can be costly for property owners and developers, and we know that having a broad selection of Certified Sites supports the health of the Wisconsin economy.”
WEDC covers a portion of the certification cost and provides a site summary for each community. Each Certified Site also benefits from WEDC’s comprehensive marketing strategy, including a dedicated webpage and a print piece that lists details about each site, as well as inclusion in a search utility that allows site selectors to quickly and easily find sites that meet their criteria.
Wisconsin has 29 development projects completed or underway on the state’s Certified Sites. Those projects, when complete, are expected to create more than 2,600 jobs and generate $472 million in capital investment.
The 21 Certified In Wisconsin sites are located in Beaver Dam, Beloit (2), Black River Falls, Chippewa Falls, DeForest, Eagle River, Fitchburg, Hobart, Howard, Janesville, Menomonie, Prescott, Sparta, Stevens Point, Verona, Wausau, West Bend, Westport, Whitewater and Wisconsin Rapids.
Applications are due by Feb. 15, 2019. Find more information and application details here.
