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Linking buyers with the builders |
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Monday, December 28 2009 |
By Chris Meyers
Staff writer
When considering a move to a new area, specifically a new subdivision, there are a lot of questions people may have.
Where is the nearest school? How close is the park? Where are commercial centers? Who is approved to build there? Are there existing homes for sale?
For one local man, those questions have resulted in an Internet-based business which answers those questions and more.
The company has information on subdivisions in eight states, including Indiana, but the creator, Lamonte Rhoades, wants to add more locations and information to the Web site, www.subdivisioninfo.com.
To do that, he is seeking $50,000 in County Economic Development Income Tax Funds, a request which will come before the county council at its January meeting.
“It would be an excellent company to have in our community,” said Alan Tio, director of the Whitley County Economic Development Corporation.
The EDC Investment Board has already endorsed the proposal, and the county commissioners gave a favorable recommendation to the county council.
Rhoades said he developed the site about three years ago when it started in Dallas and Columbus, Ohio.
Despite a slump earlier this year in existing and new home sales, Rhoades said activity on the Web site has increased in recent months in Dallas and other locations, a sign that the market may be recovering.
He hopes to have the Web site and business in full operational status when the market does make a full recovery, rather than play catchup.
If all goes well, he would like to have information on the Web site for subdivisions in the top 150 markets in the country in the near future.
If approved, the $50,000 loan would be administered through a loan program from Region III-A, an economic development district and regional planning commission.
Rhoades would be given a five-year repayment schedule for the loan, of which the funds could be kept by Region III-A for a future request from another Whitley County business or returned to the county.
Rhoades estimated that the business could offer as many as 25 to 30 jobs in the next four to five years that would be well-paying information-technology positions.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, January 05 2010 )
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