Major expansions and development underway at Marshall County site
With slightly less than 35,000 residents, and little fanfare, Marshall County in northeast Mississippi is rapidly experiencing a transformative economic boom.
The county, deeply embedded with agricultural and low-tech manufacturing traditions, is seeing an unprecedented surge in development and attracting substantial investments from major industrial players.
Household brand names such as Amazon, Volvo, Nike, Corelle, Post Cereal, Carrier Air Conditioning, McCormick Spices and Cooper Tire have established facilities in Marshall County.
Thanks to the Chickasaw Trails Industrial Park megasite near Holly Springs, the county’s economic identity is being redefined and creating a bonanza of new opportunities for the area.
Justin Hall is the executive director of the Marshall County Industrial Development Authority, which oversees Chickasaw Trails.
Every few weeks, Hall takes a couple of his board members on a tour of Chickasaw Trails for project updates and remains amazed at the growth of the expansive industrial park.
“Landing a project isn’t easy but the real work starts once ground is broken” he said. “We’ve been blessed to keep a lot of activity going at Chickasaw Trails.”
The 3,600-acre industrial park launched in 2005 after several years of Hall and his 13-member board acquiring land and identifying infrastructure needs. Chickasaw Trails is located 27 miles from Memphis, with I-69 bordering the western edge of the park and the Norfolk Southern intermodal railway nearby.
“Asics (sports apparel) and Exell (beverages) were our first companies to come on board in 2005,” he said. “As development started, things really began to take off. In 2012, we landed Rockwool (insulation and ceiling tiles)—it was their first U.S.-based facility and helped position us for the future.”
The energetic Hall, who became the MCISA’s executive director in 2013, said the game-changer for Chickasaw Trails came in January 2024. Amplify Cell Technoligies, a joint venture between Accelera, Daimler Trucks & Buses and PACCAR, broke ground on its new battery cell manufacturing plant.
“Amplify is the largest payroll commitment of any major project in the state’s history,” he said. “When completed, the plant will be over a mile long and have more than 2,000 high-paying jobs. They’re expected to be in production in mid-2027.”
The plant will boast an annual manufacturing capacity of 21-gigawatt hours (GWh) for the production of lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery cells.
At $1.9 billion, the project is the second largest economic venture in state history, according to the Mississippi Development Authority, the state’s lead economic development agency.
In April, online shopping giant Amazon announced it was locating inbound cross dock operations at Chickasaw Trails and will construct a 930,00-square-foot facility that is designated to receive and consolidate products from vendors. It represents the third Amazon facility to locate at the industrial park.
“The new Amazon project will create 1,000 new jobs and is scheduled to open in mid-2026,” said Hall. “It’s well-underway—they’re pouring concrete as we speak.”
Additionally, the Tennessee Valley Authority is constructing a $39 million electricity switching station on the north side of Rockwool next to the Marshall County Workforce Training Center.
“TVA has invested heavily in all of these projects and I give credit to (TVA senior project manager) Bill Adams for helping us identify these truly large sites,” said Hall. “We now have sufficient power that actually goes around the border of the park, saving us having to go all over the country-side for electricity.”
Byhalia Mayor, Don Hollingsworth, called Chickasaw Trails the “lifeblood” of his town and Marshall County.
“The overall growth has been tremendous and we couldn’t be more pleased,” said Hollingsworth. “Just here in Byhalia, there are 900 new homes being constructed in two subdivisions. We used to be a sleepy little farming community and now we’re experiencing growing pains due to the influx of new industry coming to the (megasite).”
Hollingsworth added that infrastructure is being tested to the limits in Byhalia. The town supplies Chickasaw Trails with natural gas and spent $6 million for the installation of a 6” high pressure gas main to the development in 2017.
“By the time we pay for it, we’ll need another one just like it,” said Hollingsworth. “My goal as mayor for the next four years is to make sure we have the infrastructure to support the tremendous growth Marshall County is experiencing largely due to Chickasaw Trails.”
A huge source of pride for Hall is the state-of-the art workforce training center located at the massive industrial park. Opened in partnership with Northwest Mississippi Community College, the center offers welding, machining, computer, electrical, forklift, customized OSHA training, WIN Job Center services and adult education, and robotics.
“When I first got into economic development, site selectors were focused on location, location, location,” he said. “But if you don’t have the workforce to fill the jobs with qualified people, the projects won’t come. The training center is a one-stop shop for both employers and job seekers.”
Holly Springs business owner, Johnathan Moore, said he’s not noticed an uptick in sales as a result of the flood of economic development projects in Marshall County—yet.
“I do know Byhalia has had a growth spurt but they’re closer to Chickasaw Trails than we are,” said Moore, who owns Booker Hardware. “But I know the county is growing and more people are moving here.”
Neighboring Desoto County, just to the west of Marshall County and a stone’s throw from the city of Memphis, is considered the fastest growing area in Mississippi. The Golden Triangle Development LINK in east Mississippi is nationally recognized for its economic development conquests.
Competition within the state, Hall believes, is healthy for all.
“(Economic development) is highly, highly competitive,” he said. “You have to appreciate the competition. On the bigger projects, Mississippi competes with multiple states. We also compete on a global scale.
“The economic development community in the state is close knit. But I still pull for our (in-state) competitors if we don’t get a project.”