It has a new interim director, but for now the Franklin-Simpson Industrial Authority still has no new land to add to its Henderson Industrial Park.

Former state legislator Jim DeCesare was introduced Wednesday as the industrial authority’s new interim director at a called meeting of the authority’s board of directors, filling a vacancy created when Dennis Griffin resigned as IA executive director Feb. 26.

Griffin resigned to take a part-time position as marketing director for the 450-acre Mid-South Industrial Park in Cave City.

His resignation came as the industrial authority was facing pushback from a number of Simpson County residents and even from Franklin city officials over its efforts to purchase nearly 180 acres to add to the industrial park near the Interstate 65 exit 6 interchange.

The industrial authority has an option to buy two tracts of farmland that would expand the Henderson Industrial Park by nearly 180 acres, but it took no action on the purchase at the March 13 meeting.

Although any expansion of the county’s available industrial property is on hold, both IA Board Chairman Gary Broady and Simpson County Judge-Executive Mason Barnes believe they have found the right person to guide the industrial authority now that Griffin’s 25-year tenure is over.

“Jim has been a state legislator and has worked with the Logan County economic development authority for approximately 18 months,” Broady said in a text message. “He brings the needed expertise.”

DeCesare, now senior partner of The DeCesare Group marketing and public relations firm, spent 14 years in the Kentucky General Assembly and was twice honored by the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce for his economic development efforts.

He will be working under a 12-month contract that calls for him to work 20 hours per week.

“When the opportunity came for me to step in, I was glad to take it,” DeCesare said. “I think I’m in a pretty good spot. I know a lot of people involved in economic development in the state and around the country.”

Barnes believes DeCesare is a good choice to lead the industrial authority through what could be turbulent times as it faces opposition to expanding the Henderson Industrial Park and questions from the Franklin City Commission about the IA’s debt load.

“I think getting Jim in that seat on an interim basis is about the best move we can make,” Barnes said. “He has a lot of economic development connections, and he’s familiar with what we’re doing.”

DeCesare said that, as interim director, he hoped to “keep the train on the tracks and moving in the right direction,” but there’s some disagreement about what that direction is among county residents wanting to protect their residential neighborhoods from further encroachment from industrial acreage.

Some two dozen residents turned out for a Feb. 14 industrial authority meeting to voice concerns about a proposed expansion of the Henderson Industrial Park, and a good number were on hand for Wednesday’s called meeting.

Barnes, for one, would like to push forward on purchasing land and expanding the current industrial parks.

“The (IA) board has previously voted for options to purchase these two tracts of land (near the Henderson Industrial Park),” Barnes said. “That met with opposition, so we’re still going through our due diligence. That’s part of it.”

The judge-executive admits that any expansion of industrial land is likely to meet with opposition, but he believes such purchases are needed to continue the county’s growth.

“A lot has been made of the fact that we still have 90 or so acres available in the (Henderson) park,” Barnes said. “But if all we focus on is taking care of what land we have, we’re going to fail. We have to be able to prepare for the future.”

Opposition to the proposed expansion is coming not just from concerned residents. Franklin Mayor Larry Dixon and members of the city commission have gone on record as questioning the move.

In a letter addressed to Simpson Fiscal Court and signed by all members of the Franklin City Commission, city leaders raised questions about the IA’s debt load.

According to the letter, the IA had in November of 2023 more than $20 million in long-term debt.

The letter states that the IA’s balance sheet “looks fairly healthy today,” but Dixon and the four city commission members expressed concerns about the future.

“What we have determined to this point is that there is no long-term plan or anything that seems to be in place as to how the IA is going to pay off that debt or to definitively plan for the future,” the letter states.

Barnes and Broady disagree, arguing that there is adequate income from lease payments and other sources to pay off the debt.

“The industrial authority’s financial condition is excellent as far as I’m concerned,” said Broady, who retired in 2020 after 38 years with Franklin Bank & Trust Company. “The debt that we have, there are strong assets to back that.”