CUBA CITY—The recent addition of two new businesses to the business park in Cuba City has been attributed to the city’s foresight and having all of the necessary tools in place.
Cuba City Economic Development Director Bob Jones said the city’s readiness for new businesses and growth at the business park, located on the south edge of Cuba City along Hwy. 80, has been important in securing both Blackbourn Racing Components and AgTech. The city’s location along a major state highway and within 15 minutes of Hwy. 151 was further accentuated by the land surveys and wetland delineations being recently completed to provide a smooth transition for new companies.
“It really all started a year ago,” Jones said. “If we didn’t take the steps we took at that time, we would not be here today.”
Jones said there is a lot of competition between communities to attract new businesses.
“Both of these companies have been outstanding to work with,” Jones said. “They both care about the look of the exterior of the buildings, which is great for us because they’re both right on the highway.”
AgTech provides agronomy services in the tri-state area. They have moved into the former Truck Country building and plan to build a holding tank next to the building.
Jones said Blackbourn Racing Components, originally of Shullsburg, was looking to expand to provide more services.
They moved their company to Cuba City, taking over the former Wausaukee building that closed in 2012. They are working on extensive updates inside the building to meet their needs. They currently build competitive tractors for tractor pulls.
“They were constrained with a facility that was just a couple thousand feet and they had another building they housed their inventory in,” Jones said. “Obviously going into a building with 41,000 square feet opens up a lot of opportunities for them. They will have a dynamometer, the device you use to measure horsepower, that will probably be the most powerful one in the United States. It goes up to 1,200 horsepower.”He said now they’ll be able to do repairs, which they didn’t have room for in the past.
Slater’s Auto Glass joined the business park last spring.
“It’s a positive trend getting three businesses all in one year,” Jones said.
Jones said the park still has 18 acres of land available for purchase and another six acres between Non-Metallic Components and Innovative Agriculture.
Cuba City has seen significant enhancements to its downtown. In the last year 12 businesses took advantage of the city’s façade grant and loan programs to improve the street appeal of their buildings.
Jones said the next issue the city needs to address is housing.
“Other communities are growing, but not everybody wants to live in a big city and we’ve got all of the amenities,” Jones said.
