Guest column by Margy Poorman
Margy Poorman
President/CEO
Last week, the Hardin County Chamber of Commerce was delighted to host Luke Schmidt of the Louisville-based consulting firm, L.B. Schmidt & Associates, during our monthly Membership Luncheon as he presented key details from a new long-term economic impact study. In collaboration with the Elizabethtown-Hardin County Industrial Foundation, Baptist Health Hardin and Elizabethtown Community and Technical College, the Chamber commissioned the study to better understand potential growth related to the establishment of BlueOval SK. Through this commissioned study, our goal was to provide hard data, projections, and insights that would benefit all of our members as they work to serve our ever-growing market. The development of this study would be impossible without support from members of our Chamber President’s Circle, along with other area businesses and organizations, including Baptist Health Hardin, ECTC, The Land Store, Lightsource bp, Swope Family of Dealerships, South Central Bank, WesBanco, West Point Bank, Kinetic by Windstream, the Elizabethtown Tourism &; Convention Bureau, Heartland Communications Consultants, PNC, The Cecilian Bank and Abound Credit Union. Their contributions were indispensable in bringing this study to fruition.
It was wonderful for Chamber members and guests to be provided with important insights during Luke’s remarks, including BlueOval’s economic impact on the region, projected regional population growth, housing projections and more. Some of the most awe-inspiring figures include a population surge of 22,380 in Hardin County and that the 2026 – 2035 expected direct payroll (including fringe benefits) at the battery park is expected to be $3.63 billion. In terms of employment, by 2026, BlueOval SK will be one of the five largest manufacturing sites in Kentucky based on current employment numbers and the announced BlueOval employment number. But, Luke’s presentation also demonstrated that in addition to the tangible impact BlueOval SK will have on our region, it will also have a large impact on how our community is viewed on the world’s stage.
As Luke pointed out, BlueOval SK will be the 10th-largest manufacturing site in the world in terms of square footage, and as a standalone battery plant, it will be the largest EV electric battery plant in the world in terms of investment, physical size, jobs created and manufacturing
capacity. We are not talking about Kentucky. We are not even talking about the U.S. This is positioning us in global conversations.
The arrival of BlueOval SK presents our community with a once-in-a-generation opportunity. This signifies more than just the creation of new jobs; it ushers in a fresh identity that holds potential for our business community to capitalize upon. We are a fortunate community, benefiting from factors such as our advantageous proximity to Fort Knox and our strategic positioning along multiple major highways. BlueOval SK marks yet another significant cornerstone in the expansion of our regional economy. By seizing this opportunity, we could be the envy of communities and MSAs throughout the country. But it is up to each sector of our regional economy to determine how they will uniquely adapt, evolve and thrive with this widespread growth. At the Chamber, we remain committed to fostering a close-knit business community in which close collaboration amidst this growth is possible.
Margy Poorman is an experienced economic development and legislative/public policy leader who serves as President/CEO of the Hardin County Chamber of Commerce.
Column Ran in the News-Enterprise on August 14, 2023
