Photo: Mike Warren, Wisconsin Rapids City Times
Well-situated site is the 23rd to earn state certification
MARSHFIELD, WI. APRIL 1, 2024 – As the newest member of the Certified In Wisconsin Program, Marshfield’s Yellowstone Industrial Park is ready for development, the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) announced today.
“Designation as a Certified Site lets site selectors know this development meets certain standards, promoting business investment and helping to build the state and local economies in the process,” said WEDC Secretary and CEO Missy Hughes.
Located on Marshfield’s southeast side, the Yellowstone Industrial Park encompasses 123 acres (101 of them developable). The site is less than two miles from four-lane U.S. Highway 10 and just 30 miles from Interstate 39, and is also served by the Canadian National Railway Company. In addition, the site is located 40 minutes from the Central Wisconsin Airport, which offers direct passenger flights to Minneapolis, Chicago, and Orlando as well as convenient air freight service. The community also offers a technical college, a two-year university, and a highly ranked K-12 school system.
To become certified, Yellowstone Industrial Park and program officials invested in completing due diligence studies including a wetlands report; a geotechnical report; an endangered resources review; and archaeological, architectural, and historical reviews. A Phase I Environmental Site Assessment has also been completed.
“Businesses and investors want certainty. The Certified In Wisconsin Program offers businesses peace of mind because it ensures that an array of concerns have been evaluated and addressed, making sites ready for immediate development,” Hughes said. “That assurance makes Yellowstone Industrial Park a prime development site.”
The certification removes many of the ambiguities, pitfalls, and delays that can confront developers during the siting and planning process. For site selectors and developers, certified site designation serves as a pre-qualification, indicating that a property’s title is clear, that it possesses sufficient utilities and other infrastructure for industrial use, and that it is properly zoned and has adequate transportation access for such uses, among other criteria.
WEDC sponsors the Certified Sites Program to enhance the state’s appeal to companies looking to invest. Working with WEDC, communities can obtain Certified Sites designation for properties at a much lower cost than they would pay to pursue the designation on their own through an independent consultant. Each community demonstrates readiness though dedicating significant staff time and effort, and by investing in the due diligence studies required for certification. This demonstration of commitment is how site selectors and developers know these sites are serious about, and ready for, business expansion and attraction.
“WEDC’s designation of our newly acquired 123 acres as a Certified Site is a very significant step in our effort to market this site for industrial development,” said Marshfield City Administrator Steve Barg. “Knowing that site selectors and developers will see this property as shovel-ready gives the city, along with its economic partners and consultants, a beneficial boost.”
Marshfield is targeting industries including wood products, metal manufacturing, agriculture, and baseline food-related and health services—including research and genetics—as tenants for the site.
The Certified In Wisconsin Program began in 2012 with a goal of powering the development of commercial properties statewide. Through the WEDC program, offered in partnership with Site Selection Group, communities can obtain site certification at a much lower cost than pursuing development-ready certification through private consultants.
Wisconsin has 15 available Certified Sites, and a total of 23 sites have been certified since the program began. Currently, 46 development projects are underway or completed on the sites, which together are expected to create more than 3,445 jobs and generate more than $581 million in capital investment.
To find out more about the Certified In Wisconsin Program, visit wedc.org/certified.
For more information on Wisconsin’s currently available Certified Sites, visit InWisconsin.com/certified.
