By Lee Burlett

Over the years, we have given you data on dozens of supersites in the South. We have profiled them in numerous ways, probed them, and publicized them with the idea that some major corporate power will indeed agree with us that these are the best sites for large industrial users in the entire South.

We can say with great accuracy that we have been successful in that many of the supersites we profiled back in the late 1990s and early 2000s are no longer supersites. They are now sites with large industries operating on them.

One thing we haven't done is to give you sites in the South that are the hottest in the South and give you reasons why they are the hottest, like this project or that project should or could land there.

So enjoy our Ten Hottest Supersites in the South and be sure to read that last line of each site's profile.

Savannah/Pooler, Ga. Site
Chatham County, Georgia
Acres: 1,560
Outstanding features:

• 350 acres cleared and graded, ready for construction of a large manufacturing facility
• Six miles from Port of Savannah, a primary port for shipping to Asian and European markets
• Bordered by and accessible from two major interstates, I-95 (north-south) and I-16 (east-west)
• Air nearby at Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport
• Drainage structures/storm water retention ponds constructed for entire site
• Additional road improvement projects such as a four-lane truck access road and a new interchange on I-95 planned for site
• Why this site is hot: Project Pinetree has this site in its final four sites. We believe Pinetree to be a European automaker project, specifically a renewed Daimler/Chrysler site search for its Sprinter Vans

• One of three TVA Certified Sites
• Located adjacent to airport
• Rail served
• All utilities in place, including 13 onsite 161 KV transmission
• 5 Miles to major highway, 74 miles to interstate
• Why this site is hot: Steelcorr is looking hard at this site. Should announce soon

• A TVA Certified Site
• Directly on Interstate-to-be 22 (US 78)
• Rail served with infrastructure in place
• Site is balanced from a cut and fill standpoint (Martha Stewart would say "that's a good thing.")
• Entire site is under signed option agreements
• 76 miles from Memphis International Airport
• Why this site is hot: Well, TVA certification is one thing. A Korean automaker is another

• Situated directly on Interstate 85 with excellent frontage
• Only 15 minutes away from Auburn University, home to over 22,000 students, 4,100 of which are involved in engineering studies
• Just over an hour from Atlanta Hartsfield International airport
• Rail adjacent provided by CSX
• Chattahoochee River dock facility/port access 26-50 miles
• 16-inch water/8-inch sewer connections, 6-inch main/natural gas connections and electricity on-site
• Phase 1 environmental complete with soil data available
• Why this site is hot: Didn't make Project Pinetree's final cut, but will make the next one's final cut

• Located in North Alabama, in the center of the Southern Auto Corridor
• Directly on I-65
• Rail served with infrastructure in place
• Why this site is hot: Made Project Pinetree's final cut

• Electric, natural gas, water and wastewater on site; road infrastructure in place
• Rail on site
• Park is DRI approved (development of regional impact), meaning that a master plan has already been completed
• Bounded on north side by Highway 528 giving direct shot to airport and Interstate 4 just south and east of Orlando national airport five minutes
• · In one of the hottest markets in the South recognized by a variety of sources as a key market
• Airport is in very close proximity affording international access -excellent from a business travel standpoint
• 30 minutes from deep water port-Port Canaveral
• Why this site is hot: There is more than a good chance the massive Scripps Institute project will not build in Palm Beach County. This site is where it will be built if that's the case

• Convenient to three major interstates (one mile from I-75), two major rail lines, and 16,000 miles of navigable waterways
• Utilities in place including water, sewer, electricity, natural gas, and fiber optics
• Surrounded by 3,000 auto suppliers in area
• Positioned just 12 miles from downtown Chattanooga; airport within 7 miles
• Why this site is hot: This site has made the short list for Project Pinetree.

Mid-Atlantic Industrial Park
Whitakers, North Carolina
Acres: 1,688
Outstanding features:

• A North Carolina Certified Site
• Directly on I-95
• Rail served with infrastructure in place
• Why this site is hot: We predict there could be up to 20 new pharmaceutical manufacturing plants built in the South within the next five to seven years. Each of those plants will average a $600 million investment. This location is as good as we can find for a pharma that wants to be near the RTP.

• Has been looked up and down by Toyota and the Japanese automaker gave the site a thumbs up
• Interstates' 40 and 55 are within 3 miles
• Two railroads (UP and BNSF) serve the site with infrastructure in place
• Memphis International Airport and world's largest FedEx hub is 16 miles to the Southeast
• Near ports on Mississippi River
• Why this site is hot: Excellent infrastructure, with low costs, located near a major market. Arkansas now has a big deal closing fund. If Toyota does not take this site for an assembly plant, another automaker will within two years.

• An additional 3,980 acres available contiguous to site
• Located 1.1 mile northeast of I-20; 50 miles from I-26
• Served by Norfolk Southern Rail
• Infrastructure in place including 6-inch gas line, 20-inch water main, and 30-inch sewer line
• Why this site is hot: Project Pinetree has included a South Carolina site in its final four. But we don't believe that project will pick this site, but we won't absolutely say it won't. Look for another big deal in the next year to find this site and it won't be automotive related unless it involves hydrogen.