The Cascade Industrial Center (formerly known as the Arlington Marysville Manufacturing Industrial Center) received its official designation from the Puget Sound Regional Council last week.

The action approved the CIC as a regional Manufacturing/Industrial Center.

The CIC is made up of over 4,000 acres in Arlington and Marysville. The land is specifically zoned for commercial uses with an emphasis on manufacturing and industrial businesses.

The regional center designation by PSRC puts Arlington and Marysville on the map for businesses looking for a place to locate and invest. It also qualifies the area for federal funding for important infrastructure, including transportation projects to help move workers and commerce. In addition to the PRSC designation, the CIC has a unique tax incentive for manufacturing/industrial companies. Arlington and Marysville lobbied the state legislature to allow for a local property-tax exemption for new manufacturing/industrial facilities built in the CIC. To qualify for the incentive, a company must create at least 25 new, full-time jobs paying at least $18 per hour.

This incentive is unique to Washington state and serves as a great attraction for bringing new business to North Snohomish County. The CIC is also a designated “opportunity zone” under the Federal Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, another benefit to those who settle there. Long term, the CIC is poised to create over 25,000 new, family wage jobs in Arlington and Marysville over the next 20 years. Significant transportation and utility investments in the CIC in addition to the PSRC designation and incentives make the center one of the most-appealing areas for manufacturing and industrial investment. Arlington and Marysville, in conjunction with Snohomish County, the Economic Alliance of Snohomish County and the Port of Everett, have partnered with Greater Seattle Partners to market the CIC. GSP is a new economic development organization that works to bring new economic activity to Puget Sound.

This partnership already has proved to be a worthwhile for all involved. As part of this partnership, GSP has assisted in the creation of a new website to market the CIC to prospective investors. The website provides tools to help investors identify specific properties and locations that fit their needs. We will continue working with GSP to attend national and international site selector conferences and summits to market the CIC and showcase the benefits of creating jobs in North Snohomish County.

I am proud of the work that has been done so far at the Cascade Industrial Center. At the heart of this effort is collaboration between local government, industry, and economic development organizations. None of this would have been possible without these great partnerships. I am excited to continue this work and see what the future holds for the Cascade Industrial Center and North Snohomish County workers and families.

Nate Nehring is a Snohomish County councilman who represents Arlington and Marysville. He writes a monthly column for this newspaper.