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Marion, Ark.  Poised to Become the South’s Next Automotive Cluster

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Since Toyota scouted the state for an automotive manufacturing plant in 2003, Arkansas has fast become one of the most desirable spots in the South for Japanese auto suppliers. Marion is at the top of that list.

Hino Motors Manufacturing announced in 2004 it would build a $160 million manufacturing plant in Marion. Denso Corp. is building a plant 35 miles away in Osceola and Eakas Corp. is staking its claim 30 miles over in Wynne. The three plants represent a quarter-billion-dollar investment and more than 1,000 employees in a burgeoning new automotive cluster.

“We are in good shape to a potential site for the next Toyota assembly plant,” said Kay Brockwell, director of Marion’s Department of Economic Development. “Our Supersite is still available and there are Toyota suppliers locating throughout the Eastern Arkansas region.”
 
Marion’s location is the key to efficient distribution. Marion is located within two miles of the junction of Interstate 55, connecting Chicago and New Orleans, and Interstate 40, connecting the East and West Coasts. It is bisected by U.S. Highways 64 and 61, lies 10 miles south of U.S. Highway 63, and five miles north of Highway 70. The city is nine miles west of the Arkansas/Tennessee state line and 20 miles from the Memphis International Airport and FedEx’s super-hub. Mainlines for the Union Pacific Railroad and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe also cross through the city.
 
Marion is part of the Memphis Metropolitan Statistical Area, with a population of 1.2 million, allowing automotive companies to draw from a labor pool of more than 600,000 employees. The University of Memphis, Arkansas State University, Rhodes College and the State Technical Institute at Memphis feed trained workers into the region. With so many educational institutions within driving distance, Marion is a young city with a median age of 31.
 
With a population of only 10,000, Marion offers quality of life advantages like low crime rates and a community spirit where neighbors work together, yet it is close enough to Memphis to afford residents a variety of culture, nightlife and recreation. Marion also offers one of the highest-ranked public school districts in Arkansas and is in the process of developing a 100-acre recreation complex. The first phase is complete and includes fairgrounds, a lake surrounded by a walking trail, and a five-field baseball/softball complex.
 
Marion has planned districts for office complexes and corporate headquarters, as well as for manufacturing and distribution operations. The Railport Industrial Park, for example, is 2,100 acres bounded on the north by the Union Pacific Intermodal Railport. The property, designated an Arkansas Enterprise Zone, is located within three miles of both Interstates 55 and 40, four miles from a municipal airport, eight miles from the Port of West Memphis, 16 miles from the Port of Memphis, and 20 miles from the Memphis International Airport.
 
Marion and the state of Arkansas offer a wide variety of economic incentives, from property tax abatement to state income tax credits for investment and job creation. There are also competitive incentive programs for work force training and for companies that include childcare facilities as part of their corporate complexes.
 
“Marion has the labor force, the transportation and utility infrastructure and industrial sites to serve the automotive sector,” said Brockwell. “The city is located in the right place to reach the growing automotive sector that’s developing in the South.”
 
For more information about Marion, call the City of Marion’s Department of Economic Development at 870-739-5414, send e-mail to kayb@marionarkansas.org, or visit www.marionarkansas.org.