Crockett TVA megasite no longer available

Unveiled with much fanfare in September 2005 as TVA's fifth certified megasite in the Southeast U.S. for automobile production, the 1,600-acre West Tennessee Auto Park in Crockett County is no longer.

Options on the property were not renewed in December 2007, said Crockett County Chamber of Commerce director Melissa Cox.

"There is no megasite," she said.

The TVA's Web site continues to list the Crockett County megasite, but notes it is "unavailable" and no longer links to the description.

The Crockett County Chamber of Commerce's Web site still touts the megasite under its own dropdown menu.

Bill Adams, TVA's market specialist for automotive assembly, referred questions about the posting to Cox.

The Crockett County site was announced in 2005 as one of only five places in TVA's seven-state service area to qualify for the designation. Criteria included size of at least 1,000 contiguous acres, immediate land availability, complete environmental testing, transportation access and labor capacity.

The site was certified by McCallum Sweeney Consulting of Greenville, S.C., an independent firm commissioned by TVA.

MSC Senior Principal Mark Sweeney said on Monday from his office in Greeneville, S.C. that the megasite program's prime requirement -- "that the land had to be controlled and conveyed to another party immediately when needed" - disappeared when the options expired.

"They did this voluntarily," said Sweeney. "And there were some other mitigating issues they didn't want to mess with."

The chamber could not afford to purchase the land outright, said a person familiar with the situation. The options spanned five large landowners and about 20 smaller landowners, some of which were half- and single-acre residential tracts. The chamber cobbled the options together in secrecy for several months before unveiling the site in 2005.

Sweeney said Crockett County economic development officials still benefit from the location's name posted on the TVA Web site.

"That may still generate some interest in Crockett County," he said.

Michael Philpot, executive director of the West Tennessee Industrial Association in Jackson, said the area is currently being marketed for suppliers, much like NSK in Dyersburg.

"It's a real good candidate for companies looking for raw land," said Philpot. "That's why we're trying to market it as a supplier site."

The withdrawal from the megasite roster leaves Tennessee with three certified sites - the newest one, a 1,187-acre Commerce Park near Clarksville; the 1,600-acre Enterprise South Industrial Park near Chattanooga; and the 1,720-acre Advantage Auto Park near Stanton in Haywood County. Others are near Hopkinsville, Ky. and Limestone County, Ala.

Mississippi's three megasites, one near Tupelo and two near Columbus, have been sold to automakers (Toyota in Tupelo) and steelmakers.