When Benjamin Franklin coined the term “Time is money,” he might as well have been peering into the crystal ball of site selection. In today’s fast-paced business landscape, responding to RFIs (Request for Information) within tight deadlines — often just two weeks or less — is critical. Knowing which parcels and buildings are available along with their utility capabilities becomes paramount.
New North partnered with Site Selection Group (SSG) and our region’s major power providers — Alliant Energy and WE Energies | WPS — to host a webinar on “Site Readiness in Site Selection” earlier this year. The intent was to share insights when responding to RFIs from the perspective of Site Selectors and Utility Partners. Peering into the crystal ball of site selection, SSG predicted even quicker turnarounds while leveraging automation for evaluation.
To address tight timelines and ensure comprehensive responses for automated evaluations, two programs stand out: New North’s Gold Shovel and Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation’s (WEDC) Certified Sites.
WEDC’s Certified Sites program establishes consistent standards for the certification of industrial sites, putting in place all the key reviews, documents, and assessments, making them attractive to developers and valuable to communities.
Key features include:
• Completed assessments: Engineering companies have completed due diligence assessments like wetland delineation and Phase 1 environmental.
• Mock site visits: The program includes a mock site visit from SSG to help communities learn and prepare for actual site visits from prospective companies.
New North’s Gold Shovel program is aimed to gather uniform site information without requiring extensive assessments, adopting a “certified-light” approach. For instance, instead of fully engineered wetland delineations, the program requests a map of known wetlands.
Drone videos and Site Alignment Analysis for each of the Gold Shovel and Certified Sites were completed earlier this year — value-adds to actively market the sites.
While we don’t have an actual crystal ball to predict when RFIs are released and how long we have to turn them around, having readily available information through these programs is essential when time is of the essence in responding to RFIs. Together, through WEDC’s Certified Sites and New North Gold Shovel programs, we’re propelling our region and state Forward – Faster.
CONTACT
Barbara Koldos, Vice President, Business Development
New North, Inc. • 920-336-3860
barbara.koldos@thenewnorth.com • thenewnorth.com
InDevelopment Conference 2024
KI Convention Center, Green Bay • Tuesday, Sept. 17 • 2–7 p.m.
For event agenda and details on presenters, read the 2024 InDevelopment Report
