Middle of nowhere: laying the groundwork for economic growth in rural Utah.

• Author: Webb, Gaylen
• Position: Focus

There's a 2,547-acre patch of dirt near Green River that's begging for businesses to be built on it. The site is actually an industrial park, but you wouldn't know it since it's barren dirt with no roads, utilities or rail spurs leading into it-the essential amenities that make industrial parks shovel-ready attractions for expanding or relocating businesses.

A potential solar farm has been considered for a site nearby, but industrial and commercial development in the area is stymied by a lack of infrastructure that has put a chokehold on economic growth. Emery County economic development director Jordan Leonard says the lack of natural gas in the Green River area has inhibited economic development for years.

Economic Roadblocks

"We have a vast supply of natural resources in rural Utah--everything from energy and agriculture to mineral resources--and there are a variety of manufacturing clusters in rural areas," says Linda Gillmor, associate managing director for urban and rural business services and director of the Office of Rural Development in the Governor's Office of Economic Development. "But the high cost of infrastructure development is one of the biggest factors to inhibit growth and business recruitment in rural Utah."

Occasionally, businesses are willing to pay for infrastructure development--but it's a disincentive for businesses to have to spend their capital on infrastructure, especially when that same infrastructure is readily available in more urban areas.

Compounding the problem, many rural municipalities don't have the tax bases or budgets to cover infrastructure costs for development, making it hard for them compete with more urban communities for business recruitment. In Green River, paying for the industrial park's infrastructure would cost millions of dollars.

In Beaver County, businesses have easy access to the interstate freeway, rail service and utilities, but there are still roadblocks in the way for businesses looking to build in the area. Economic development director Scott Albrecht says, logistically, infrastructure constraints in the county largely have to do with the federal permitting process for the construction of internal roads.

"The mining industry is strong in Beaver County and some of the companies are willing to make the capital investment in infrastructure, but the permitting process is the constraint," he explains.

Renewable energy, another big economic driver in Beaver County, is often stunted by lack...