Trace Creek Construction founder and CEO Sam Howard told Lewis County Fiscal Court that the county is seeing a “definite shift” in the number and size of economic-development inquiries.
During the October meeting of the court, he asked local leaders and citizens to lean into facts, civility, and readiness as opportunities advance.
Howard, whose firm is headquartered in Vanceburg, said Trace Creek has spent years promoting Lewis County directly to site selectors and companies. “We have traveled to states such as Florida, Arizona, Vermont, and others, promoting Lewis County and recruiting companies to locate here,” Howard said.
He noted a rise in interest from heavy industrial prospects, data centers, and electric-generation infrastructure. He also pointed to assets that site selectors frequently flag, including Ohio River proximity and a CSX mainline through the county, even as the lack of a four-lane interstate remains a challenge.
Howard used his appearance to explain why nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) are standard in major site searches.
Companies and their site-selection consultants routinely require NDAs before detailed conversations can occur. He said local officials often do not know a prospect’s identity until the state is well along in negotiations.
“Many factors that drive a company’s selection are outside the control of the local elected officials and economic-development professionals,” he said. NDAs also protect employers from tipping off competitors before a deal is secured.
Examples from across Kentucky
To give magistrates context for what other communities are seeing, Howard recapped five large Kentucky projects that illustrate how fast circumstances can change and how local sentiment can shape outcomes.
• Oldham County data center: Announced in the spring, the plan quickly ran into public pushback over transparency, siting, and power use. After the fiscal court enacted a temporary moratorium on data-center applications in July, the developer withdrew the project.
• Mason County technology campus: Local officials have acknowledged that a Fortune 100 company is evaluating sites for a technology campus that would include data centers. Public estimates have cited up to 1,000 construction jobs and roughly 400 permanent jobs after completion. The proposal has generated both enthusiasm and organized opposition while details continue to emerge.
• Fayette County solar proposals: A developer has sought approval for commercial solar farms totaling hundreds of acres near the Clark County line. Mayor Linda Gorton has publicly objected to placing utility-scale solar on prime farmland. The projects require approval from the Kentucky Public Service Commission, and debate has been intense.
• Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant redevelopment: The former DOE site in McCracken County is being reindustrialized. General Matter announced a $1.5-billion uranium-enrichment project this year after years of environmental remediation and planning.
• BlueOval SK Battery Park, Glendale: Hardin County banked more than 1,500 acres two decades ago and later landed Ford and SK On’s multi-billion-dollar battery complex. Trace Creek built the ECTC/BlueOval SK Training Center, which opened to train the new workforce. Howard cited this as an example of how early site control and preparation can pay off.
“These stories show how quickly a project can accelerate or collapse,” Howard told magistrates. “Local voices matter. Preparation and facts matter too.”
A local company with a statewide footprint
Founded in Howard’s Trace Creek Road home in 1993, Trace Creek Construction has grown from a small start-up into a construction-management, design-build, and general-contracting firm with projects across the Commonwealth.
The company’s recent work includes educational, industrial, health-care, and public-sector facilities. Howard said Lewis County has been short-listed in the past for large projects, including one proposal valued at $5 billion that would have brought 2,000 construction jobs and more than 500 permanent positions before the company chose another state.
He urged the court to keep momentum, continue assembling competitive sites, and be responsive to due-diligence requests. “I would like feedback from the fiscal court and from the community related to future projects for Lewis County,” he said.
What NDAs and community tone mean for Lewis County
Howard acknowledged that secrecy around NDAs can fuel suspicion. He said they are unavoidable in modern site selection and asked residents to judge proposals on facts that can be shared as milestones are reached.
“We often see projects announced, then immediate opposition is voiced. In some instances local opposition has caused the project to not locate within a county,” he said.
He also called out social media as a decisive arena. “In the recent past, social media has played a key role in defining who a community is and what they support,” he said. He encouraged residents to share accurate information, ask questions respectfully, and keep an open mind while negotiations are active.
Positive, informed dialogue, he said, becomes “a great selling point” when companies and site selectors do their research.
Why Lewis County stays in the conversation
Howard said the county’s river access and rail remain differentiators for large industrial users.
The challenge is balancing those strengths against constraints such as interstate access, while staying ready to show companies real sites, realistic timelines, and a supportive community posture.
“Every company and site selector who looks at a community will know as much about that place as the local folks do before they ever call,” Howard said. “By presenting to the court and letting our citizens know the type of projects we see, we can frame what Lewis County could land in the future.”
Howard invited constituents to share constructive input as county and state officials, along with development team members, continue conversations with prospects.
Watch a video of the meeting here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rw4TimNbKZA
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