A Proactive Investment in Toledo’s Future

Shove Ready
Sites Fund

A Proactive Investment in Toledo’s Future

The $20 million Shovel Ready Sites Fund represents a strategic, forward-thinking investment designed to position Toledo to compete—and win—in today’s highly competitive economic development landscape.

Across the country, communities that succeed in attracting new jobs, housing, and private investment share one common advantage: they have sites ready for development when opportunities arise. Without prepared sites, projects often go elsewhere—regardless of Toledo’s strengths.

This fund allows Toledo to act proactively, not reactively.

  • Too often, promising development opportunities are lost because sites are not ready. Barriers such as fragmented ownership, environmental challenges, outdated infrastructure, or lack of due diligence can delay projects by months or years.

    The Shovel Ready Sites Fund is designed to eliminate those barriers by:

    • Assembling and preparing strategic properties

    • Completing environmental remediation and due diligence

    • Investing in site readiness and infrastructure

    • Reducing risk for private developers and employers

    By doing this work upfront, Toledo can significantly accelerate timelines, making it easier for companies and developers to choose Toledo with confidence.

  • The Shovel Ready Sites Fund is powered by an innovative funding approach that leverages existing economic growth—not new taxes.

    The fund is supported by a dedicated revenue stream from the Rossford-Toledo Joint Economic Development Zone (JEDZ), providing long-term, stable funding to invest in site readiness.

    This model allows Toledo to:

    • Invest at scale without placing new burdens on taxpayers

    • Reinvest regional economic growth back into Toledo

    • Sustain site preparation efforts over the long term

    It is a self-sustaining tool designed to fuel continued economic momentum.

  • The Shovel Ready Sites Fund will enable the Toledo Community Improvement Corporation to:

    • Proactively acquire and assemble strategic sites

    • Prepare land for job-creating industrial and commercial projects

    • Support new housing and mixed-use development

    • Revitalize underutilized and legacy commercial corridors

    • Unlock private investment that would not otherwise occur

    By creating a pipeline of development-ready sites, Toledo will be positioned to respond immediately when opportunities arise—rather than scrambling to catch up.

Shovel Ready
Sites Fund

A Proactive Investment in Toledo’s Future

The $20 million Shovel Ready Sites Fund represents a strategic, forward-thinking investment designed to position Toledo to compete—and win—in today’s highly competitive economic development landscape.

Across the country, communities that succeed in attracting new jobs, housing, and private investment share one common advantage: they have sites ready for development when opportunities arise. Without prepared sites, projects often go elsewhere—regardless of Toledo’s strengths.

This fund allows Toledo to act proactively, not reactively.

  • Too often, promising development opportunities are lost because sites are not ready. Barriers such as fragmented ownership, environmental challenges, outdated infrastructure, or lack of due diligence can delay projects by months or years.

    The Shovel Ready Sites Fund is designed to eliminate those barriers by:

    • Assembling and preparing strategic properties

    • Completing environmental remediation and due diligence

    • Investing in site readiness and infrastructure

    • Reducing risk for private developers and employers

    By doing this work upfront, Toledo can significantly accelerate timelines, making it easier for companies and developers to choose Toledo with confidence.

  • The Shovel Ready Sites Fund is powered by an innovative funding approach that leverages existing economic growth—not new taxes.

    The fund is supported by a dedicated revenue stream from the Rossford-Toledo Joint Economic Development Zone (JEDZ), providing long-term, stable funding to invest in site readiness.

    This model allows Toledo to:

    • Invest at scale without placing new burdens on taxpayers

    • Reinvest regional economic growth back into Toledo

    • Sustain site preparation efforts over the long term

    It is a self-sustaining tool designed to fuel continued economic momentum.

  • The Shovel Ready Sites Fund will enable the Toledo Community Improvement Corporation to:

    • Proactively acquire and assemble strategic sites

    • Prepare land for job-creating industrial and commercial projects

    • Support new housing and mixed-use development

    • Revitalize underutilized and legacy commercial corridors

    • Unlock private investment that would not otherwise occur

    By creating a pipeline of development-ready sites, Toledo will be positioned to respond immediately when opportunities arise—rather than scrambling to catch up.