| |
The former Murray Plant facility has been acquired by Bloomington, Indiana based Pinnacle Properties Management Group. The announcement was made today by Peter Dvorak, President and CEO of Pinnacle.
Renamed the Tennessee Enterprise Center, this 2,582,918 square foot warehouse and manufacturing facility sits on 123 acres in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee, just north of the Alabama border, and is equidistant between Nashville, Tennessee and Huntsville, Alabama. It was formerly the largest lawn mower factory in the world, until its owner, Murray Ohio, filed for bankruptcy. As a result of Pinnacle’s acquisition of the facility approximately 300 new jobs have been created – with the potential for new job openings to double within the next two to three years.
Outside of auto assembly plants, the Tennessee Enterprise Center is one of the largest manufacturing facilities in the Southern United States. Pinnacle negotiated its purchase agreement with the creditor that gained control of the facility through the bankruptcy proceedings. Financial terms of the acquisition were not released, but the total investment when redevelopment is complete is expected to exceed $25MM.
The Tennessee Enterprise Center’s first three tenants; Swisher Mower and Machine Company, Briggs and Stratton, and Assurance, will initially occupy 1.3MM of the facility’s nearly 2.6MM square feet. Letters of intent to lease have also been signed that will result in another 700,000 square feet of occupancy. Pinnacle plans to invest up to $5MM more in the facility in order to upgrade the property and attract additional local, regional, and national tenants.
Local and national media representatives joined dignitaries and VIP guests including Asst. Commissioner of the Tennessee Dept. of Economic & Community Development Paul Lagrange, Governor Phil Bredesen’s representative Bradley Jackson, Lawrence County Executive Ametra Bailey, Lawrenceburg Mayor Allen Chapman, Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce President Randy Brewer, and Peter Dvorak for a press conference and reception announcing, and celebrating, the acquisition and renaming of the facility this morning.
In making the announcement Mr. Dvorak stated, “The response and cooperation from the local and state government has been overwhelming. Pinnacle worked closely with the Chamber of Commerce, City of Lawrenceburg, Lawrence County government, the local and state Economic Development Corporations, Tennessee Valley Authority, and Tennessee Department of Environmental Management, in order to save the facility and make this deal happen. As a result of the tremendous cooperation from all parties involved, Pinnacle has entered into a partnership with Briggs & Stratton, Swisher Mower and Machine Company, and Assurance Operations Corp. that will help fuel further growth and economic prosperity for Lawrenceburg, Lawrence County and the entire state of Tennessee.”
“We appreciate the tremendous investments the partners in this project are making in Lawrence County,” said County Executive Bailey. “These companies will be able to take advantage of our community’s greatest asset- talented, hard-working employees. I know they will prosper here and the county pledges full support to their efforts.”
“The City of Lawrenceburg looks forward to working with the outstanding companies involved in this project to help make our community the best possible place for them to do business,” said Mayor Chapman. “This announcement provides a wonderful boost for our local economy.”
“This announcement would not have been possible without the total support of a great team of state and local officials combined with the confidence that Pinnacle and their partners have demonstrated in our community,” said Chamber of Commerce President Brewer. “We look forward to long and prosperous relationships with the companies who have chosen to invest so much and create jobs in Lawrence County.”
For over 50 years Swisher has been manufacturing lawn and garden power equipment and accessories. The company manufacturers and distributes products throughout the United States and internationally under the Swisher brand and several private labels.
Briggs & Stratton is the largest manufacturer of small, air-cooled engines for lawn and garden and other outdoor power equipment and the largest producer of generators and pressure washers in the United States. Briggs & Stratton products are manufactured and marketed in over 100 countries on all seven continents.
Founded in 1988, Assurance Operations Corp. is a leading steel and aluminum metal stamping and metal fabrication company. Headquartered in Greenhill, Alabama, with operations in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee and Saline, Michigan, the company employs approximately 160 people throughout all locations.
Pinnacle Properties has a track record of redeveloping large, challenging industrial properties, and was previously involved in the successful redevelopment of the largest television factory in the world, the former 200 acre, 2,000,000 square foot Thomson/RCA facility in Bloomington, Indiana.
|
stevens[.]stylegroup.com 
