Feb. 6—ANDERSON — After some local residents raised concerns, an asphalt shingle plant proposed for Madison County is now off the board.
Malarkey Roofing had sought annexation into the Anderson city limits and rezoning of 157 acres along Ind. 109 to the south of the Menards store. The Oregon-based company planned a $200 million project that would employ as many as 200 people.
But local residents voiced concerns about possible emission of hazardous materials, increased traffic on County Road 500 South and the impact on property values.
Anderson Mayor Thomas Broderick Jr. in a statement Tuesday said that not every business enterprise, regardless of positive attributes, is a good fit for every city.
“Based on my review and briefings of all information to date, it is clear that both the city and Malarkey recognize that another location would be preferable,” he said. “The company has advised that they are still considering an alternative site, outside of our county, as a potentially preferred site.”
Broderick said he agreed with Malarkey’s decision.
Greg Winkler, executive director of the Anderson Economic Development Department, said Malarkey always had a second site, but that Anderson was its first choice.
Winkler said Tuesday that the rezoning request for the 157-acres has been requested to be removed from the council’s agenda for Thursday.
“I appreciate the time and thoughtfulness that each of you have invested in pursuit of this opportunity,” he said. “Malarkey is, as we have said all along, a wonderful company that would have added $30M to our tax base over the coming 10 years and whose jobs and payroll would have approached a $50M annual impact for Anderson citizens and business.”
He said the city had no other location that would meet the requirements of the company.
Anderson city council last month passed by a 7-2 vote two of the three required readings of an ordinance to annex the property.
Three members of the council traveled last Friday to Oklahoma City to visit a Malarkey plant that would have been similar to the one in Anderson.
“Thanks to the Malarkey team for considering our community for your newest expansion,” Broderick said. “As everyone knows, the location of this plant, on primarily what would become a newly annexed area into our city, has come under a substantial amount of scrutiny by many of our neighbors located in the areas close to the proposed site.
“I have received more email and communication regarding this matter than any prior potential project. For the most part, the emails and inquiries were fair in their questions and concerns,” he noted.
Follow Ken de la Bastide on Twitter @KendelaBastide, or call 765-640-4863.
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