Compounding this problem was a lack of available funds to leverage any kind of turnaround. It meant we couldn't construct the infrastructure necessary to attract new jobs. Some excellent development sites -- and a tremendous pool of available, hard-working employees -- were lying dormant. Meanwhile, local officials spent more time finger-pointing rather than working toward a solution. It left our older residents bitter, and our younger ones feeling hopeless. Those who could, mostly the young people, left our community to better their lives somewhere else.
But that has begun to change in recent years, and the ARC has been one of the reasons why.
First of all, ARC funds were used to help construct sewer and water projects around the Zanesville Municipal Airport area, just a few miles west of the city. Much of this work was originally placed to serve The New Bakery Company of Ohio, a wholly owned subsidiary of Wendy's International that manufactures hamburger buns for the Wendy's restaurant chain. But these projects also laid the groundwork for even more development in the area.
ARC money was used a few years later to construct sewer and water lines -- as well as a water tank -- a couple miles farther north near the little village of Sonora. It was a watershed moment for our struggling community when AutoZone, the national auto parts retailer, announced it would build a 500,000 square-foot distribution center on some vacant farmland. How important was this project? We were excited about the company's commitment of 250 new jobs. Imagine how we feel today as the actual number is nearing 600.
But that ARC-funded project didn't stop with AutoZone. Three years later, that infrastructure project allowed All American Homes of Ohio, a subsidiary of Coachmen Industries, to build a modular home manufacturing plant near the Interstate 70 Airport exit. All American said it would create 150 jobs, but, like AutoZone, has far exceeded that commitment.
Meanwhile, a little farther south near New Bakery, a road was constructed that skirted the airport runways to the east and opened up developable land in what is now known as Airport Distribution Park. Two locally bred companies -- 5B's and Ritchey Produce -- soon built new facilities in the park. Several others have joined the parade, too, including companies from Germany, Japan and -- soon -- Korea as our first foreign investments into Muskingum County's economic comeback. Within the next 18 months, Airport Distribution Park will be home to at least nine companies and about 400 employees.
In all, in this one small corner of Muskingum County, ARC funding has helped put more than 1,000 of our neighbors back to work during the last decade. But while that might be evidence enough of the ARC's effectiveness, it is still not the entire story.
Many years ago, a tract on Zanesville's north side was purchased and named Zanesville Industrial Park. But not much happened in that park until 1988, when Anchor Glass Container moved its Zanesville Mould plant there from its aging building near downtown. Not long after that, Worthington Foods, a manufacturer of vegetarian products now owned by Kellogg's, built a plant next door to Anchor Glass. Other businesses, such as FedEx, Barnes Advertising and Ohio Textile Services, have also joined the park tenants.
But the nearby intersection at Fairview Road and State Route 60 was rather dangerous for the truckers and employees entering and leaving the park. It was determined a new access road should be constructed from the south, starting at the intersection of Ritchey Road and 60. Not only would it be safer, it would also open up many more acres of the park for further development.
Again, the ARC was called on for help. The park was renamed NorthPointe, and now truckers and other drivers alike are better served by a controlled intersection. A development of new apartments is under construction as well as a small strip plaza on the south end. And NorthPointe Drive has also turned out to be the first leg of a new county road between Zanesville and Dresden that will begin construction later this year.
We're still not finished. In 1999, Dollar General Corporation of Nashville, Tennessee, announced a huge project for Muskingum County. The rapidly expanding company said it would construct a 1.1 million square-foot state-of-the-art distribution center on a 250-acre site among 1,200 acres of new ground recently purchased by the Zanesville-Muskingum County Port Authority. It was a leap of faith for everyone as absolutely no infrastructure was in place: Dollar General believed we could get the job done and we believed we could, too.
Again, the ARC came through, this time with funding to help build a 3,500-foot access road into what is now known as EastPointe. That road was completed just last month, and we eagerly await the opening of Dollar General's new building -- and the employment of another 350 people -- early next year.
It is almost ironic to note that the EastPointe access road project brings the ARC story in Muskingum County to full circle. Originally, this agency's dollars helped us better serve New Bakery with sewer and water service. Now, that new access road at EastPointe will soon serve another project -- New Bakery's second bun-manufacturing plant, to be built during the next year and which will put another 74 people to work with good-paying jobs.
In all, a bit more than $2 million of ARC assistance has resulted in more than 1,700 new jobs in Muskingum County.
While there have been plenty of success stories in our community in recent years, we are not through yet. Our monthly unemployment figures may have dropped, but they are still above the state average. The same holds true for almost all the counties that surround us, counties from which our employers also draw their workers. It must be remembered that funds used to create jobs in Muskingum County also have a positive effect on Licking, Coshocton, Guernsey, Noble, Morgan, and Perry counties, too.
What has been accomplished, and what we still hope to accomplish, we certainly could not have done alone. It has taken a strong partnership of local, state and federal leaders and agencies. The ARC has been an integral part of that alliance, and we certainly hope that it will remain so as we continue to push forward.