The Hancock County Redevelopment Commission approved a resolution at its September meeting authorizing the purchase of 20 additional acres of land for phase two of the Amplify Hancock County project.
The land for the initial phase of the project, which includes the main Amplify campus and its parking lot, was purchased in a similar fashion in March.
The 20 acres to the north of the initial Amplify campus were already part of the Amplify plan, but the land still has flexibility for how it will be used once the main portion of the campus is up and running.
According to Gary Pool, the county engineer, there are hopes for a childcare facility on the land, which could be used by both employees and students at Amplify. He went on to recommend that the county should pursue leasing the land out to a third party childcare company rather than trying to run a facility themselves. Additionally, at a plan commission meeting last month, Veridus suggested that the area could be used for additional parking if necessary, while at the RDC on Thursday, committee president and county council member Kent Fisk suggested that the land could also be used for an expansion to the educational facility.
The land purchase initial offer was set at $1.72 million, the same as the land for the initial 20 acres of the project, and set a total cost cap at $1.75 million. The reason the two land parcels were not bought simultaneously, Pool said, was that the county was uncertain of how much cash it would have and wanted to ensure it could afford the additional 20 acres before making the purchase.
The initial land purchase was mostly paid for through a grant, but, according to both Fisk and Mitchell Kirk, communications director for the Hancock Economic Development Council, while a grant was applied for to help with the cost of the second parcel, it was not awarded.
Along with the resolution approving the purchase, a second resolution was passed adding the second parcel of land to the Mt. Comfort Corridor Economic Development Area. Pool said this was to ensure the county would capture any additional tax revenue brought in from development in the area.
Plans presented by Hancock County Engineer Gary Pool to the county council and other members of the county government.
Plans presented by Hancock County Engineer Gary Pool to the county council and other members of the county government.
