The Monticello Economic Development Commission held their monthly meeting at 12 p.m. on Wednesday, October 4, at the Monticello Country Club.
The meeting opened my Nita McDaniel, MEDC Director, discussing sales tax rates for the city and Drew County. She stated that neither the city or the county are producing documents showing comparisons between 2022 and 2023 at this time. McDaniel stated that the city is currently up on sales tax collections from this time last year by a total of $6,831, but that Drew Co. is down from last year in the amount of $14,619.
McDaniel moved on to industry recruitment. She stated that the past month has been busy. There is one industry whom she has been in talks with that is currently seeking a preferred site at another location in Arkansas. They plan to come to Monticello, but this would be there second site. There is another industry which has been labeled as “not typical” who has shown some interest. McDaniel said that she has submitted all requested information and locations, but there has been no further response. Another prospective business submitted to receive information from the MEDC, and that information has been sent to them. They have said that the Intermodal area would be ideal. There is another industry that has shown interest in the Spec Building. The owner has been in talks, but her husband recently passed away from cancer. She has requested additional time, and McDaniel said that she extended this courtesy. The owner is still extremely interested and McDaniel is quite certain that this project will come through. There are a couple of other industries that have shown interest, and are waiting for buildings that will meet their needs to come available.
On the transportation side, McDaniel said that Interstate 530 and making US Highway 425 four lane all the way to Hamburg have been discussed. Both projects have been in talks for many years. There was discussion of inviting John Lipton, the new head of the Highway Department, to come to a meeting at the University of Arkansas at Monticello, in order to discuss these projects and begin to establish a relationship with him.
McDaniel said that the expansion of SeaArk is still on going. She has also set up On the Job Training for another company in town, noting that not a lot of employers are providing this these days.
Retail recruitment was also said to be busy. McDaniel said that she is spending a lot of time trying to find existing buildings to meet these retailers needs. There are currently five national retail chains looking to come to Monticello, but there are no structures that meet their needs at the moment.
Drew Memorial Health Systems Chief Executive Officer, Scott Barrilleaux gave a brief update on the status of the hospital. He stated that DMHS has entered into the management agreement and sub lease agreement with Baptist Health. They are waiting on the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) to approve and sign off, as they are the lien holder for DMHS. Once the USDA signs off, the agreement will be 100 percent official. The official merger date is still projected to be December 3. Barrilleaux said that with December 3, falling on a Sunday, they would do a ribbon cutting at a later date, and invite everyone to attend.
“I think this will be great for our community,” Barrilleaux said. “I think this will be great for our hospital. It will bring some stability on the financial side. We are fortunate to find a partner like Baptist.”
Barrilleaux added that in September, there were 31 deliveries. He stated that the goal is for DMHS to be the place to go to have babies, and hopes that everyone will take advantage of the state of the art Labor and Delivery facilities.
