MEDC 2008 NEWS

Scroll down for listing of Towns and Cities
Chronological listing of news
News on Individual Members - Member News
__________________________________

NEWS ARCHIVES
Click below for news articles in each year.
2010
2009
2007

List by town - linked to chronological list below:
Amory - Steel Development
Baldwyn - ForeFront, Inc.
Batesville - Toyoda Gosei
Bay St. Louis - Bienville Industrial Park
Blue Springs - Toyota Tsusho
Booneville - ACCO
Corinth - Ayrshire
Ellisville - Project Ready
Greenville - Mars Expand | Uncle Ben's Plant
Indianola - Eagle
Iuka - DynaSteel
Jackson - Cellular South | Entergy | Regions | Travelers Insurance
Long Beach - Triton
Madison County - Comcast
Magnolia - Indeck
Monroe County - Rebar Steel in Amory| RTI International Metals
Moss Point - Tindall Corporation
New Albany - Vuteq
Oxford - CNBC | Winchester
Pascagoula - Chevron | Chevron USA
Ripley - Carolina Accents | Industrial Timber
Senatobia - PK USA
Starkville - Aurora
Stennis Space Center - GB Tech
Tupelo - Cenro | N.E.W.
West Point Expansion - Ultralife

Chronological list

COOPER PLANT SURVIVES THE CUT
December 18, 2008 –(No Link)
  . . . At 9 a.m. Wednesday, city and county leaders, joined by CDF officials, celebrated Cooper Tire & Rubber Co.'s decision to keep the 1,200-employee plant in Tupelo open and likely add more jobs here.
_____________________

INDECK MAGNOLIA BIOFUEL PLANT GROUND BREAKING IN MAGNOLIA, MS
November 20, 2008 - Press Release
Indeck Energy Services, Inc. of Buffalo Grove, Illinois and Homan Industries of Fulton, Mississippi (“The Partners”) announce that the ground breaking ceremony for the Indeck Magnolia BioFuel Center wood pellet production plant will be held at 12 Noon Thursday November 20, 2008 at the plant site in Magnolia, Mississippi. . . .  The plant is expected to be in full commercial operation by September 1, 2009.
_____________________

DYNASTEEL EXPANSION TO BRING JOBS TO YELLOW CREEK
November 13, 2008 - (No Link)
A new 42,000-square-foot building due to be completed by year-end will add production capacity and at least 50 jobs at the 150-employee Yellow Creek plant.
_____________________

PEPSI SOUTH CONSTRUCTING BOTTLING FACILITY IN HATTIESBURG
November 6, 2008 - (No Link)
The Area Development Partnership, Brown Bottling Group and Wis-Pak recently announced plans for Pepsi South, a new $49 million bottling facility in Hattiesburg. The 235,804 square foot facility is currently under construction in Forrest County Industrial Park. Pepsi South is expected to begin production towards the end of 2009.
_____________________

TECH PARK FIRST 'PROJECT READY' SITE IN MISSISSIPPI
October 28, 2008 - Laurel Leader-Call
Howard Technology Park, located in Ellisville, officially achieved the first “Project Ready” status in Mississippi designated by the economic development department of Mississippi Power Co. “Project Ready” status certifies that the park is ready-to-go for industrial prospects, has infrastructure in place and has necessary connections for almost any type of business.
_____________________

MARS ANNOUNCES $7 MILLION DISTRIBUTION EXPANSION
October 26, 2008 - Greenville Latest News
Mars Food U.S. announced a $7 million expansion of its Greenville site as the company recently celebrated its 30th anniversary in the Mississippi Delta. Mars plans to build a state-of-the-art distribution center for the Uncle Ben's rice products that come out of the Greenville site.
_____________________

GOVERNOR BARBOUR ANNOUNCES TOYOTA TSUSHO AMERICA IN BLUE SPRINGS October 24, 2008 - (No Link)
Automotive supplier Toyota Tsusho America, Inc. will locate two operations in Blue Springs to supply Toyota Motor Manufacturing Mississippi. The company estimates that the two operations could employ up to 70 people.  Toyota Tsusho production start-up will coincide with that of the vehicle plant in late 2010.
_____________________

AMORY WELCOMES LARGEST SINGLE INVESTMENT EVER
October 24, 2008 - (No Link)
Steel Development Co.'s $175 million rebar manufacturing plant is the largest single investment in Amory and north Monroe County. Company officials, joined by state and local leaders, broke ground on the 80,000-square-foot rebar manufacturing plant, which will create 200 jobs. The facility will be situated on 80 acres that have been cleared already near the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway in the Amory Port Industrial Park.
_____________________

AYRSHIRE STARTS CORINTH ERA
October 22, 2008 – (No Link)
Ayrshire Electronics marked the start of a new era in Corinth Tuesday as officials celebrated their acquisition of the former ACT Electronics facility and the more than 200 jobs that were saved as a result of the purchase.
_____________________

ENTERGY RANKED IN TOP 10 SITE SELECTION MAGAZINE
October 19, 2008 - (No Link)
Entergy Corporation has made the list of the top 10 utilities when it comes to economic development, said the September issue of Site Selection magazine.
_____________________

AURORA FLIGHT SCIENCES EXPANDS AT GTRA
October 17, 2008 - (No Link)
LOWNDES COUNTY — A $15 million project to triple the space at Aurora Flight Sciences’ Golden Triangle Regional Airport facility is a commitment to grow the operation’s capabilities. There will be a 64,300-square-foot addition to its facility. Its original space is 21,000 square feet. Company officials intend to double the facility’s current workforce of 35 over the next year, then move its employment figure to 200-300 within the next two to three years.
_____________________

TRITON TO BUILD R&D FACILITY
September 19, 2008 - (No Link)
ATM manufacturer Triton Systems of Delaware Inc. plans to establish a Research and Development Center in Long Beach, and to expand the Global Service Center in Memphis.
_____________________

CHEVRON EXPANDING AGAIN
August 29, 2008 - (No Link)
Officials with Chevron Corporation announced Thursday the company is taking steps toward another expansion at its refinery plant east of Pascagoula. The refinery would produce 25,000 barrels a day of base oil, used in making premium motor oils. With this addition Chevron would become the largest producer of base oil in the world.
_____________________

FOREFRONT OPENS FACILITY IN BALDWYN
August 11, 2008 - (No Link)
ForeFront Group Inc., a Springfield, Tenn.-based supplier of premium golf accessories, has opened its new global distribution center in Baldwyn.
_____________________

INDUSTRIAL TIMBER OPENS NEWEST PLANT IN NORTH RIPLEY
July 7, 2008 - (No Link)
Industrial Timber will open its newest plant in the North Ripley Industrial Park. It will start with 35 employees and expand to over 100. Industrial Timber is North America's largest, lowest cost supplier of wood frames to the upholstered furniture industry with plants thoroughout MS, NC, and TN employing more than 350 workers.
______________________

EAGLE RELOCATING OPERATIONS TO MISSISSIPPI DELTA
June 13, 2008 - (No Link)
Indianola - Eagle Aquaculture Inc. is completing a very successful 2008 hatch of hybrid catfish fingerlings at the Jubilee Farms hatchery in this Mississippi Delta city. Eagle has partnered with Jubilee Farms to hatch more than 20 million hybrid fingerlings, a record number for both companies as well as the industry.
______________________

REBAR MANUFACTURER TO LOCATE IN AMORY
May 23, 2008 - (No Link)
A manufacturer that produces rebar from recycled steel plans to locate in Amory’s Waterway Industrial Park. The plant is expected to be about a 100,000-square-foot facility and is expected to create at least 100 direct full-time jobs. Eco Steel’s total investment in Amory is expected to be in excess of $150 million.
______________________

Community Development Foundation in Tupelo named in the Top 10 Economic Development Groups in the United States by Site Selection Magazine.
______________________

Oxford and Mississippi featured on CNBC on May 16 at 8:00 p.m.
Reporter's blog.
______________________

COMCAST CELEBRATES ASC OPENING IN MADISON COUNTY
April 28, 2008 - Mississippi Business Journal
Comcast's Advanced Solutions Center recently had its ribbon-cutting ceremony in Madison County. The facility will be staffed by more than 600 new customer service representatives, trainers, and management.
_____________________

REGIONS BANK COMPLETES CENTER'S EXPANSION
April 18, 2008 - (No Link)
Regions Bank has completed an $8-million renovation to its Operations Center on I-55 North in the Capital City.  It will now serve as a regional operations facility and training center for all Regions lines of business associates in a multi-state area.
_____________________

GB TECH REINVESTS IN COAST
April 18, 2008 - (No Link)
GB Tech of Houston, Texas, which once invested more than $1 million at Stennis Space Center for research and development efforts alone, recently reinvested back into the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
______________________

CAROLINA ACCENTS BUYS BUILDING
April 18, 2008 - (No Link)
Carolina Accents has purchased a building and is moving to the North Ripley Industrial Park. It is anticipated that the expansion of Carolina Accents into the North Ripley Industrial Park will create more than 125 additional jobs over the coming months.
______________________

ACCO BRANDS CELEBRATES GRAND OPENING OF DISTRIBUTION & MANUFACTURING FACILITY IN BOONEVILLE
April 10, 2008 - Business Wire
ACCO Brands Corporation celebrated the expansion of the company’s Booneville, Mississippi distribution and manufacturing facility with a grand opening ceremony that included dignitaries from across the state and beyond. The $55 million project has created an additional 330 jobs.
_______________________

MAC TECHNOLOGY CHOOSES HANCOCK COUNTY FOR INDUSTRIAL PARK SITE
April 9, 2008 - MAC Press Release
High Tech company, MAC LLC, has chosen the Port Bienville Industrial Park in Hancock County as its research, development and light manufacturing company location. This development will create 50 new jobs once fully operational.
_______________________

FURNITURE SUPPLIER TAPS SPOT IN TUPELO
April 2, 2008 - (No Link)
Up to 40 new jobs will be created when Cenro USA establishes a new furniture supply business in Tupelo. Cenro, a partnerhip between Hiddenite, N.C.-based Industrial Timber Inc. and China-based Tai Zhou Chenguang Vehicle Co., will supply metal and other components to the furniture industry, company officials said.
_______________________

NEW PLANT A BOOM TO MISSISSIPPI AREA
March 27, 2008 - (No Link)
Ohio-based RTI International Metals said Tuesday it will start building a Monroe County facility late this year. The plant is scheduled to open in 2010. It will bring in up to 800 construction jobs for a year or more and will employ 200 people at salaries up to $40,000 once production begins.
_______________________

MARS FOOD US ANNOUNCES PLANS FOR $10 MILLION PLANT EXPANSION IN GREENVILLE
March 19, 2008 - (No Link)
Mars Food US recently announced plans to invest $10 million in the expansion of its Uncle Ben's plant in Greenville, Mississippi throughout 2008 in order to increase production and meet demand for its popular rice products.
________________________

TINDALL OPENS NEW FACILITY IN MOSS POINT
March 12, 2008 - (No Link)
Tindall Corporation officially opened its new $26 million production facility in Moss Point with a host of dignitaries present, including Gov. Barbour and Bill Lowndes III, CEO of Tindall.
_________________________

TOYOTA SUPPLIER TO LOCATE IN NEW ALBANY
March 10, 2008 - (No Link)
Governor Haley Barbour announced today that Vuteq USA, Inc. will build its newest manufacturing facility to supply Toyota in the North Mississippi city of New Albany. The $31 million plant is expected to open in 2009, employing 130 people.
_________________________

CHEVRON BUILDING PLANT IN PASCAGOULA
March 7, 2008 - (No Link)
Chevron Corporation plans to build a pre-commercial plant at its refinery on the Mississippi Gulf Coast that will have a petroleum capacity of 3,500 barrels per day. Building the plant will require 800 workers and operating it will require 50. Employment has grown from 1,200 to 1,540 within the past five years.
_________________________

TOYODA GOSEI NORTH AMERICAN GROUP TO OPEN PLANT IN MISSISSIPPI
March 3, 2008 - (No Link)
Governor Haley Barbour today applauded the announcement that Toyoda Gosei North American Group will build a new automotive parts manufacturing plant in Batesville, Miss. . . . By 2010, it plans to employ 120 employees with sales of $31 million.
______________________

METRO JACKSON TO GET 75 NEW JOBS, GOVERNOR BARBOUR ANNOUNCES
February 25, 2008 - (No Link)
The largest commercial property casualty insurer in Mississippi, The Travelers Companies, Inc., will locate a new Claim Customer Service Center in Jackson and create 75 new jobs for the Metro area, Governor Haley Barbour announced today.
_________________________

PK USA TO CREATE 150 JOBS WITH NEW PLANT IN SENATOBIA
February 14, 2008 - (No Link)
PK USA will build a $35 million stamping and welding assembly manufacturing plant in Senatobia. PK USA's new facility will create 150 jobs and will serve Toyota and other Japanese automotive companies and suppliers in the state . . .
__________________________

100 NEW JOBS FOR NORTH MISSISSIPPI, GOVERNOR BARBOUR ANNOUNCES
February 8, 2008 - (No Link)
Governor Haley Barbour today welcomed the announcement that Winchester Company of Olin, Inc., will relocate its Military Packaging Operation to an existing facility in Oxford, resulting in the creation of 100 new jobs.
___________________________

GOVERNOR BARBOUR ANNOUNCES TWO COMPANIES LOCATING IN NORTH MISSISSIPPI
January 31, 2008 - (No Link)
Governor Haley Barbour today announced two companies have chosen to locate in North Mississippi. N.E.W. Customer Service Companies, Inc. (NEW) celebrated the grand opening of a Contact Center in Tupelo in Lee County, and Ultralife Batteries held a ceremonial lease signing in West Point to indicate their decision to locate a facility in Clay County. Together, these companies will provide an estimated 380 jobs to North Mississippi, officials say.