Super Factory not coming to Todd County

Todd County was in the final running for one of the largest factories in the nation and one of the largest construction projects in the world. We heard it might cost at least $4 billion to build.

While the details are fuzzy on why the monster facility didn't come, the impact of several thousand workers' payroll tax and the property taxes from those who would move here is almost hard to imagine. It would have been in the millions and it would have been a boom in services and could have fixed a lot of problems.

Still, and this is important to note, it could have also cause unprecedented problems with ambulance, fire, police and educational services.

Let's don't forget a huge factory in Clarksville would have similar results minus the payroll we wouldn't get.

Some good that might yet come out of this is that we are now on the national (and international) map when it comes to big factories finding a home. That also could mean groups of smaller factories building a "campus" facility. So as bad as this seems it does have a silver lining. In the meantime, however, we need to develop our industrial sites, get some zoning in place and prepare our schools and services for growth.

Give us your thoughts: How should we go about better preparing for economic growth? Are we going to ever score a big factory or are the smaller factories grouped in one place a better bet?