The 50-acre Walk-to Industrial Park
In a complete community with its own local economy, people make things. This is necessary both to provide employment for those sectors of society who prefer to work with their hands and to assure the community has the ability to provide for itself and have goods to trade. As the global economy changes, local manufacturing contributes to local economic resilience.
The VillageTown sets aside about 50 acres (20h) for a walk-to Industrial Park, meaning it is outside the VillageTown walls, but close - within walking distance. It is located near the transport center. The best facility would have a flat roof, partially covered in turf for sports events and with part allocated for solar panels and rainwater harvesting.
The focus would be to attract Small to Medium Enterprises, and certainly in the first VillageTown, to actively recruit notable and compatible businesses to move staff and shop to the VillageTown. The potential of a cash-enriched Legacy Fund may help in such recruitment.
Housing for industrial park workers becomes essential, yet runs the risk of gentrification as white collar workers may have greater purchasing power. For this reason, the industrial park may also have one or two villages set aside as a parallel market, where to qualify for a home purchase, one must work in the industrial park in a non-managerial job.
The Eastern Missouri Village Town is not a place where its residents simply live and commute to work. We want the work to be here, too. All kinds of work. White collar, blue collar, craftsmen, artists, professional, and anyone who wants to work. Let's make it happen.
No comments:
Post a Comment