Article submitted by James Master, The Pilot News Managing Editor
During the citizen’s input portion of the recent Argos Town Council meeting, interim Director of the Marshall County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC) Greg Hildebrand informed the council that the ITAMCO building is listed and that the MCEDC continues to receive interest regarding that building.
“But it’s a lot of building, it’s a lot of money,” he said. He also stated that MCEDC is “cognizant of who’s asking also. I want to alleviate any fears of that too.”
Hildebrand said that they receive a lot of requests for sites where electric car batteries could be manufactured. “We’re cognizant that may not be what communities are looking for,” he said.
Hildebrand went on to say that MCEDC has received some interest in the downtown. “It’s a small manufacturer. I talked to Chris VanDuyne about some space.”
When asked how much space the manufacturer needs, Hildebrand responded with about 5,000 square feet and be able to be used for food manufacturing. One of the other requests from the manufacturer was a loading dock.
The B&R building owned by the town was brought up as a possible location for that manufacturer.
Council Member Shawn Harley said that while the B&R building doesn’t have a loading dock, it does have an open access to an alley where a dock could be installed.
“This is a food manufacturer that is small. They would need a small kitchen, an area that could be passed by the Health Department and then a warehouse for their finished goods,” Hildebrand said.
Utility Superintendent Jamie Lindstrom stated that the B&R building is about 3,000 square feet.
The council suggested that Hildebrand speak to Town Economic Development Director Mark VanDerWeele about pursuing this further.
