South Central Indiana was home to six professional site selectors from the Consultant Connect group for a few days in mid-May.  Our regional team planned this event, beginning well before COVID delayed so many schedules, continuing when the time came to host an in-person Familiarization Tour.

Ann Petersen, from Atlas Insight in Nashville, Jim Blair, from Navigator Consulting in Atlanta, Minah Hall, from Compass Key Site Solutions in Chicago, Alan Reeves, from Newmark in New York, Amy Gerber, from Cushman and Wakefield in Atlanta, and Chris Shastock, from CBRE in Chicago, made up the team that visited.  Consultant Connect staff Faye Davis and Nick Riashi accompanied the consultants for the entire visit and were invaluable in helping us plan and conduct this long-awaited, one-of-a-kind event.

The six consultants visited a very large portion of our region in a short time.  Due to the geographic size of our region and the need to keep things interesting for our visitors, multiple communities were included, with brief stops to meet the people of South Central Indiana. One of the most unique site selector events ever was hosted at the Muscatatuck Urban Training Center for a tour and presentation of the facility and a “backyard BBQ”.

Available sites were visited, with visits to local restaurants and downtown stops to allow our visitors to glimpse the quality of life offered by the region. Education and workforce leaders addressed the visitors, and meetings with corporate partners gave the consultants genuine testimonials about the advantages of a business located here. An extended stay was offered to attend the GMR Grand Prix Race at Indy Motor Speedway the day following the Fam Tour, and one of the consultants was able to take advantage of that invitation.

We extend our thanks to Hoosier Energy for being our lead sponsor providing funding and staffing to assist with this undertaking, and to Duke Energy who also provided financial assistance to make the tour possible.