Industrial Foundation Celebrates 60 Years of Economic Development

Wednesday, the Elizabethtown/Hardin County Industrial Foundation will celebrate 60 years of dedication to a simple yet powerful mission – create jobs. The foundation debuted an anniversary logo to mark the six decades of tremendous success.
While the mission never stops, its leaders past and present are reflecting on the foundation’s accomplishments.
“It’s job creation and a continuous upgrading of services that benefit those workers and the entire community, from schools to healthcare facilities to government services,” said former state senator Joe Prather, who was chairman of the Foundation Board of Directors from 2001-2005.
In 1956, Elizabethtown retailers were concentrated near Public Square. The Kentucky Turnpike, now Interstate-65, was new. Hardin Memorial Hospital was two years old, and it would be another eight years before Elizabethtown Community College opened.
At this time, a group of Elizabethtown businessmen had been considering the community’s economic assets. After the Korean conflict, with concern about military spending cuts, these community leaders convened to diversify and grow Elizabethtown’s economy with new industries.
Their interest led to the incorporation of the Elizabethtown/Hardin County Industrial Foundation on Jan. 6, 1956.
Current board chairman Greg Jenkins considers the founders community visionaries.
“This was a group of concerned people who did all they knew how to do to diversify the job market,” said Jenkins. “Back then, they were on the cutting edge of economic development and recruitment, and their actions positioned Elizabethtown and Hardin County for long-term growth.”
With Clifford Diecks serving as the first president and chairman of the board, the Foundation’s work helped welcome industries such as Crucible Materials, Dow Corning and Gates Corporation to Elizabethtown.
Industry recruitment intensified in the 1970s, when a statewide initiative provided funding options to communities to establish regional industrial parks, Prather said.
“We turned the page on how we would be business-ready,” said Prather, who served in the state Senate at the time. It wasn’t a matter of land alone, he noted. “What set us apart from other like-sized communities was we had local leaders bold enough to embrace this vision,” he said.
The plan led to the Foundation’s purchase of more than 1,250 acres where the Hughes Industrial Park and Elizabethtown Regional Airport at Addington Field are now located.
Like several Kentucky communities, Elizabethtown saw a surge in industrial activity after Toyota located in Georgetown. That’s when Ambrake, now Akebono, and what is now AGC Automotive found homes in Elizabethtown.
Many more companies followed, and manufacturing has grown into a top local economic driver. Hardin County is now home to approximately 80 manufacturers employing more than 8,600 workers and paying about $338 million in earned wages, said Foundation President and COO Rick Games.
Through these recruited employers, communities in the Hardin County area have welcomed countless new residents, leading to growth in a broad range of other areas from cultural diversity to recreational offerings to job opportunities in the service sectors.
The Foundation, which manages and markets Hughes Industrial Park, T.J. Patterson Industrial Park and the Glendale Megasite, continues to recruit new companies to the area and much more.
“People notice when a new building goes up. People notice when the governor comes to town and cuts a ribbon,” Jenkins said. “But those events represent a small portion of what we do.”
That work includes supporting existing industries with training programs, expansion plans and other resources. It also includes executing strategies that make the Hardin County community more enticing to future industries.
“Assisting retail businesses with site research leads to the shopping and dining options that boost quality of place – an important criteria for site selectors,” Games said.
The Foundation also led the county’s Kentucky Work-Ready Community certification process in 2014, which helps answer increasingly important criteria about the available workforce.
“Today, nearly every community across the country has an industrial park, economic development professionals and a variety of incentives, and Elizabethtown and Hardin County are continuously adjusting our approach to ensure we remain competitive,” Games said.
He credited the Foundation’s board and community partners. Partnerships with local governments are especially important, he said, noting that the City of Elizabethtown has worked hand-in-hand with the foundation since it’s founding and continues to serve as a partner in the Elizabethtown industrial parks.
The board encompasses a range of business and industry, local government and education representatives, each playing an active role in the Foundation’s work.
“Each board member is here because they want our community to continue to prosper, and they are committed to getting things done.” Games said.
Matt Hess, an attorney with Bell, Hess and VanZant, joined the board five years ago. He was pleased to join a group of people known for their concern for the community, he said, and has found the Foundation board members work together to determine how the community needs to be positioned over the next decade and beyond.
“What those founders did in the 1950s was impressive and very forward thinking,” Hess said. “And the challenge for us is determining how we’re going to continue that.”