The Oak Ridge Industrial Development Board (IDB) signed an agreement with the Oak Ridge Economic Partnership on Friday hiring the Partnership to oversee daily Board operations and recruit industrial prospects to the city. According to the agreement, the two entities will “work together to enhance industrial development for the city of Oak Ridge.”

David Wilson, Chairman of the IDB said, “The benefit of formalizing an agreement between the IDB and the Economic Partnership is that it will provide a ‘one-stop’ resource for individuals and enterprises considering locating a busines in Oak Ridge.”

David Bradshaw, Chairman of the Oak Ridge Economic Partnership stated, “This formal partnership between the Economic Partnership and the IDB is a natural progression. The two entities have worked together in the past and this contract will allow them to now work more closely in concert with one another. It should benefit all parties. The Oak Ridge Economic Partnership will now serve as chief marketer and point of contact with prospects for all IDB-owned properties, including Horizon Center industrial park.”

Also inked on Friday was an agreement between the IDB and Horizon Center,LLC, a subsidiary of the Community Reuse Organization of East Tennessee, to transfer the Horizon Center business park to the IDB. The property transfer further supports the “one-stop shop” for economic development, since Horizon Center is the largest tract of industrial property in Oak Ridge.

Lawrence Young, Chief Manager of Horizon Center, LLC, and an Economic Partnership board member said, “The Partnership-IDB alliance and Horizon Center property transfer go hand in hand and just seem to make sense to help set up our marketing and recruiting efforts