This map from a Hancock Economic Development Council presentation to Hancock County Commissioners shows the outline of a possible agriculture-based corridor around North State Road 9, north of Interstate 70. Image provided
This map from a Hancock Economic Development Council presentation to Hancock County Commissioners shows the outline of a possible agriculture-based corridor around North State Road 9, north of Interstate 70. Image provided
A group is promoting agricultural technology and bioscience as a development theme along the Ind. 9 corridor north of Greenfield.

During the Aug. 19 Hancock County Commissioners meeting, the executive branch of the county heard a presentation from OBE Advisors and HWC Engineering on behalf of Hancock Economic Development Council.

Randy Sorrell, executive director of HEDC, said with the creation of a tax increment financing (TIF) district north of Greenfield’s Interstate 70 interchange several years ago, there needed to be a plan of development for that area.

As the western side of the county has developed in recent years, the eastern and northern portions of the county still contain wide spaces of fertile farmland. According to data from the USDA Census of Agriculture, the county in 2022 had more than 184,000 acres in farms.

Mike Higbee, president of OBE Advisors, said the agriculture industry is pivoting in the 21st century and has come to an important crossroads in the county: “Is it going to continue to be a part of that foundation, or is it going to disappear gradually?”

“The community said quite clearly that they want it to be part of our county’s heritage, and they want it to continue,” Higbee said. “… It was determined that if you’re going to work with farmers and help them prosper, there needs to be a transition to the 21st century.”

The industries of agricultural technology and bioscience are among the chief emerging fields in Indiana. The agbioscience sector in Indiana accounts for nearly $70 billion — almost 17% — of Indiana’s overall economy, according to the Indiana Data Research Center. Most of the major agribusiness companies, such as Bunge North America, ADM and POET, have grain, milling and ethanol production facilities in Indiana.

“Many farmers are doing very innovative things with how they produce their crops, how they manage the farms, the economics … It’s not your dad’s farming anymore. It’s a whole different business than it was 50 years ago,” Higbee said.

Some proposed guiding principles for a potential ag tech district in Hancock County include protecting agriculture east of State Road 9, developing Maxwell and Eden as rural mixed-use districts to enhance and celebrate the rural character, and focus on creating an agribusiness employment district along County Road 300 North. Higbee said the working group that has been developing a plan for the corridor has looked at case studies from around the country for ag tech parks and economic development to see what might be applicable locally.

When he talked about the county’s assets, Higbee said, “The rural nature of State Road 9 is something to protect and preserve. You’re not looking to create another Mt. Comfort Corridor; you’ve already got one of those. So what does this corridor look like, and how does it leverage off the rural assets that are out there?”

A major crux of the presentation to the commissioners was an opportunity to create an ag tech and innovation district around the Elanco campus, with a focus on research and development, specifically focusing on sustainability and efficiency. (The presentation can be heard by visiting the Hancock County Government of Indiana channel on YouTube. Look for the Aug. 19 meeting video and forward to the 53:54 mark; the discussion lasts about 30 minutes.)

Last year, Healthstar Partners — an alliance of Hancock Health, NineStar Connect and Pride Investment Partners — formed to purchase the Elanco campus. Leaders of the group said the purchase was motivated by a desire to keep the land and property in the hands of the community. Elanco plans to move to Indianapolis but has a lease on the campus until 2027.

“We want those businesses that start here to be able to stay here in the community and have spaces they can graduate up to. This could include future spaces for university partners, could include future spaces for other businesses that want to come in and be part of it,” Cory Whitesell, vice president of HWC engineering, said.

George Plisinski, vice president of engineering at NineStar and a former Greenfield city councilman, told commissioners the infrastructure of the area, from the roads to the sewers, would be important for the feasibility of an ag tech corridor. He said some utility needs north in Maxwell and Eden would need to be corrected if plans for this corridor go forward.

Plisinski also touched on the importance of sizing the needs for the corridor appropriately.

“It’s really about right-sizing that infrastructure,” he said. “You want to put that infrastructure in the ground one time. It’s very expensive, and you want to have thoughtful conversation (as to) what type of development this area and this corridor may generate so you can size those. There are things that we can do. We can build a wastewater treatment plant that can be sized for now and expanded later.”

Higbee said the Aug. 19 presentation represents no official plan, and that recommendations will come from the working group that is assisting in brainstorming these concepts.
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