AIRPORT PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT PROJECTED TO COST UPWARDS OF $10 MILLION; "THIS IS GOING TO BE AN EXPENSIVE SITE TO DEVELOP"

“This is going to be an expensive site to develop,” Rick Jackson told council members. Jackson, vice president of landscape architecture for Lititz-based ELA Group, said steep inclines will add cost to the project.

More info: Council President Heather Zink asked if $10 million in a grant and a loan could pay all development costs. “We are close,” Jackson answered.

Money: The state’s Business In Our Sites grant/loan program, which began its application process Dec. 31, 2021, closes March 31. The rules allow a municipality to receive up to $4 million in grant money along with a loan.

Warning: Columbia may not get the money, Stivers cautioned. “There are no guarantees,” he said after the meeting. Jackson, however, told council the McGinness Innovation Park seems to fit perfectly within the guidelines of the state Department of Community and Economic Development, which runs the grant/loan program.

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