Sioux City Site Marks Iowa's 25th Certified Site

The Iowa Economic Development Authority (IEDA) announced today that that the 27 Flags site in the Southbridge Business Park in Sioux City is the latest to achieve certification through the Iowa Certified Site Program. This site is the 25^th in the state to be designated as project-ready for industrial development.

“This is a very big win for Sioux City,” said IEDA and Iowa Finance Authority director Debi Durham.  “Companies exploring expansion or new operations do not often have the luxury of dedicating substantial amounts of time to the site location process, so having a site available where all the development questions have been asked and answered better positions the community to attract new investment”.

27 Flags is part of the Southbridge Business Park, located on the southern edge of Sioux City between the Missouri River and Interstate 29, and is ideal for large-scale industrial projects. The 27 Flags property includes nearly 120 developable acres with features including a new electric substation, water treatment plant, access to Interstate 29 and a drop and pull rail yard served by Union Pacific Railroad. 

“We know being shovel-ready is critical,” said Sioux City Mayor Bob Scott. “Sioux City has been a leader in business development, attracting both good-paying jobs and capital investment to the area. We are committed to the goal of creating new industrial sites with an eye on continued growth in the future.” 27 Flags is Sioux City’s second certified site, following the 250-acre Bridgeport West Industrial Park that was certified by an earlier process and later sold to Seaboard Triumph Foods.

IEDA rolled out the Iowa Certified Site Program in May 2012 to address the lack of project-ready industrial sites in the state. The program provides an independent, third-party certification through the nationally recognized site selection firm Quest Site Solutions (formerly McCallum Sweeney Consulting). The Iowa Certified Site Program is designed to consider a combination of national site location standards, as well as Iowa’s natural assets and the needs of the state’s targeted industry sectors.

Site certification is one of the fastest growing trends in the site selection business and by introducing certified sites to the market, Iowa is better able to compete for projects. In completing this rigorous process, developers – working closely with local officials, utility partners and consultants – are better prepared to market their sites with specific site-related information and community data. Additionally, all site due diligence is completed, and plans are in place to address any issues, meaning sites are relatively free from risk and the timeline from decision to development is reduced.

Twelve subsequent application rounds have been opened since the program was established, and eight additional sites are currently working through various phases of the program. The next round of applications will be accepted in July 2019 for the following categories:

Site Categories

• 50 - 249 contiguous acres – General Industrial Site
• 100+ acres with one site ≥ 20 acres – General Industrial Park
• 250 – 499 contiguous acres – Large Site
• 500 – 999 contiguous acres – Super Site
• 1,000+ contiguous acres – Mega Site
• 500+ acres with one site ≥ 100 acres – Super Park

For more information about the Iowa Certified Site Program, visit iowaeconomicdevelopment.com/CertifiedSites.

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