Automotive News - Guide to Economic Development - Supplement - GED24

KENTUCKY CABINET FOR
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
The Bluegrass State offers businesses a combination of location, auto industry expertise and
quality of life. Kentucky is within a day's drive of two-thirds of the total U.S. population, with
20 interstates and major highways crossing the state.

WORKFORCE

BUSINESS SUPPORT

Kentucky is in the midst of
a $100 million Work Ready
Skills Initiative supporting
its 2 million-person labor
force. Current workforce
training facilities are being
constructed or upgraded,
and the "Work Ready" city
certification assures high
school graduation rates,
internet availability and
community commitment to
a highly skilled workforce. In
addition, the Kentucky Skills
Network-a statewide system
of workforce professionals-
helps companies recruit, hire
and train employees at no or
low cost.

The state's Build-Ready
program offers prospects
the ability to choose land
that is basically ready for
development. With a BuildReady site, a pad has been
developed, all permits have
been cleared, all regulatory
action taken and building
plans are available. The
state has 261 project-ready
sites and two certified
mega sites, Glendale (near
Elizabethtown) and I-24
(near Hopkinsville) for
companies seeking large
tracts of land.

INFRASTRUCTURE
Business costs in Kentucky
are among the lowest in the
country. Kentucky claims
the lowest industrial electric
power rates in the eastern
U.S. Three air hubs (Amazon
Prime, DHL and UPS) offer
overnight global delivery.

EXISTING INDUSTRY
Approximately one-third
of all new investments and
jobs announced in Kentucky
during the past five years have
been connected to the auto
industry. The growing auto
industry presence has made
the state third in the nation
in car and truck production,
and the No. 1 state in terms
of vehicles produced per

E C O N O M I C D E V E L O P M E N T G U I D E / J U LY 2 0 1 7

capita, with nearly 6 million
manufactured over the
past five years. Today three
automakers and nearly 500
suppliers, including key
resources like aluminum,
steel, rubber and plastics,
employ more than 100,000
Kentucky residents.

KENTUCKY
BY THE NUMBERS

100,106
people are employed in
auto-related facilities

QUALITY OF LIFE
The cost of living in Kentucky
is 11% below the national
average, and an average
20-minute commute time is
a bonus for many workers.
Cities like Lexington and
Louisville feature world-class
arts and entertainment, while
some 50 state parks and
thousands of acres of water for
skiing, swimming and fishing
cater to outdoor enthusiasts.

4.2% of Kentucky's GDP
made up by motor vehicles,
bodies, trailers,and
parts manufacturing

AUTOMOTIVE INVESTMENTS:

$8.26 B
(January 2012 to April 2017)

CONTACT INFORMATION
Mandy Lambert, commissioner of business development
Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development
502/564-7670
Mandy.Lambert@ky.gov
www.thinkkentucky.com

http://www.thinkkentucky.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Automotive News - Guide to Economic Development - Supplement