In most instances,
the managing entity of the program will be a state, regional
or local economic development organization. Often, and is preferred,
an independent consultant will be brought in to help develop
the criteria for making a site “certified” and conduct the certification
process. The managing entity will solicit applications from
land owners, municipalities and real estate agents and then
work with them to gather the necessary information required
to fulfill the certification criteria. Once all of the documentation
is received that the criteria have been met, a site is considered
“certified”.
The first step in the site certification or shovel-ready process
must deal with many issues, including:
- Should the program
contain different categories of sites (e.g. industrial, mega,
vertical development, office, distribution) and if so how
many and which ones?
- Can a site be
certified for more than one category?
- What is the minimum
size site for the program?
- Are available
buildings to be covered in the program?
- Will state agencies
participate in providing input information?
- Who will issue
the certification?
- What criteria
will be used?
- What certification
timing will be used (e.g. is everything required in place
now, will it be in place within a specified number of days)
or will it be open-ended?
- Will constraint
data apply, e.g. minimum utility capacities apply?
Unless already predetermined by governmental policy or funding/grant
requirements, certification programs should be done in concert
with representative local level ED agencies, representative
property owners, state and local officials with an interest,
environmental regulatory agencies and others who can provide
valuable input and assistance.
Once a well planned program is developed it can be implemented
quickly by the sponsoring agency. One of the first steps in
a developed program is to solicit applications of sites for
certification from landowners or other entities. It is prudent
to work with the agency or firm that assisted in developing
the program to review these sites for certification qualification.
