Today about 1,000 people work in the park at a US Postal Services mail processing facility, the National Weather Service, the regional jail and the telemarketing firm. It is estimated the park, which has lots of hills and valleys unsuitable for development, has the potential room for another 1,000 jobs.

The Business & Industrial Development Corp., a public-private partnership designed to promote the Kanawha Valley, developed and manages Southridge Centre Business Park. According to a published report citing BIDCO president Bill Goode, about $8.5 million has been invested in the park and another $1 million is needed to complete the infrastructure. Goode inherited the project when he became president in 1997.

Lots are currently available at about $150,000 per useable acre. Goode says that includes all utilities and a paved road to the property. He concedes BIDCO is more interested in the project than the sale price of the land. Goode says the company would donate the land for the right economic development project.