May 2010

The following summary provides a highlight of the various monthly activities for the Logan County Economic Development Corporation (“LCEDC”). All activities are not described in the summary, but rather some of the more visual activities of the LCEDC are presented.

General Meetings:

May 1- Rich O’Connell presented at the Wells Fargo Smart Money Financial Workshop.

May 5- I spoke at Rotary to describe the new Buxton CommunityID report, Dec. 2009.

May 6- As an Advisory Council member, I attended the SIFE competition presentation at NJC.

May 7-20- The negotiating team met daily to finalize the Development Agreement with Project Green. The Agreement was signed by the Board of Logan County Commissioners on May 19th. The prospect is now identified as Star Clean Oil, LLC.

May 13- The Joint Committee held its regular monthly meeting.

May 13- Jim Neblett and I met with several investors in the Star Clean Oil project.

May 17- I attended the ground-breaking ceremony for the new Blue Spruce dormitory NJC.

May 18- The negotiating team met in Denver to finalize the above-described Development Agreement.

May 20- I met with a businessman looking to acquire an existing business in Sterling.

May 23-26- A group of four board members attended the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) convention in Las Vegas.

May 23-26- A group of three board members attended the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) convention in Dallas.

Economic developments:

Project Green/ Logan County Industrial Park- The Logan County Commissioners signed the Development Agreement with Star Clean Oil, LLC, on May 19th. Although we are still required to maintain confidentiality on the details of this project, we can discuss the public information. Star Clean Oil is planning to construct and operate an oil recycling facility on 50 acres of the new Logan County Industrial Park. Because of the lengthy process acquiring the land, they have decided to delay breaking ground until early 2011. We will proceed with planning for a Public Improvement District (PID), applying for a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and hiring an engineering firm to plan the infrastructure improvements.

Rich O’Connell, along with Dan Long (LCEDC President), Loretta Davidson (Treasurer) and Sandy Glaser (Secretary), attended the ICSC conference in Las Vegas, NV. We have identified several retailers who have indicated a strong interest in re-locating new stores in Sterling, and we discussed their future plans. Another contact was the co-owner of the pad site located in front of Home Depot on West Main. Buxton Co. made meeting space available to us during the conference, and we were able to make new contacts as we visited the various retail and real estate broker display booths.

Jim Neblett, along with Lance Bolton and Leroy Whipkey, attended the AWEA conference in Dallas, TX. This wind energy conference is growing every year, and our group was able to meet with multiple companies who are interested in Logan County wind development. The Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) sponsored a booth for the first time this year, and our group spent time there meeting with potential prospects. Our effort is to attract supply chain companies that will provide service and parts for the wind farms.

LCEDC has revised their committee structure and all LCEDC members and non-members are encouraged to pick a committee that is working in an area of economic development that interests them, and join our efforts to improve the economic climate in Logan County. The Committees and chairs for the working committees open for new participants are as follows:

• Asset Resources- Dan Long 526-8021
• Workforce Development- Sandy Glaser 522-5900
• Marketing and Communications- Rocky Joy 522-9010
• Targeted Prospect Development- Rob Nichols 522-9756
• Strategic Planning and Implementation- Lance Bolton 521-6607

Updates:

UPDATE 4/29/10: The City and its representatives have signed all the grant documents and delivered to the FAA for final approval of the airport runway extension. Bids are scheduled to go out soon thereafter and construction could start by mid-summer. There is an anticipated 90 days construction period, so the improvements should be completed this year. The FAA has approved a new GPS instrument approach and applications are in process to add this improvement. UPDATE 5/28/10: Bid openings for both the runway extension and apron improvements are scheduled for June 10th.

UPDATE (4/25/10): We have received final plan drawings from Bruce Glass, The Architects Group, for three different-sized buildings. We are ready to proceed on the next steps of: 1) approval by City and County building inspectors, and 2) sending the approved plans out for bid to several contractors. NO PROGRESS TO REPORT.

UPDATE (4/30/10): Colorado Highlands Wind, LLC, project north of Fleming continues as a viable project and the developers are working hard to finalize power purchase agreements (PPAs) and transmission issues. NO PROGRESS TO REPORT

UPDATE (4/30/10): East Cheyenne Underground Gas Storage is planning to begin construction and development of the gas storage facility this summer. NO PROGRESS TO REPORT.

UPDATE (4/30/10): BP Alternative Energy, LLC, has announced plans to construct an estimated 120 to 200 additional wind turbines and a 230KV transmission line at their Cedar Creek wind farm near Grover in Weld County. With the existing 267 turbines, this could double the total wind energy to 600MW, or enough to supply 190,000 homes. UPDATE 5/28/10: It was reported at AWEA that permits were approved for this project by Weld County.

Filed under: In The News by LCEDC