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Aspire Clarksville History
The Aspire Clarksville Program was founded in 1996 by a group of business and community leaders that were dedicated to a new vision for Clarksville and Montgomery County a vision of a community that supports a favorable business climate and offers an exceptional quality of life for its citizens.
The program has evolved and is currently entering its fourth 4-year campaign cycle. See below for highlights from each cycle.
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1997-2000: Aspire 2000
Campaign Leadership:
John Wallace, Chairman
Walton Smith, Jr., Treasurer
Scott Bagwell, Image Enhancement Chair
Earl O. Bradley, III, Business Development Chair
David B. Smith, Community Enhancement Chair
F. Gene Washer, Data Center Chair
Campaign Highlights:
$1.6 million in private funds raised for local marketing efforts
8,151 new jobs created
7 new companies recruited
12 industry expansions
Increased average wages from $20,000 to $23,000
Encouraged over $100 million worth of local and state roads construction and improvements
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2001-2004: Aspire Clarksville II - Taking Us To A Higher Level
Campaign Leadership:
Earl O. Bradley, III, Chairman
Jim Mann, Treasurer
Carolyn Pierce, Image & Information Chair
Dick Rossetti, Workforce Development Chair
Tom Hudson, Business Development Chair
Charlsie Lankford, Tourism Development Chair
Cecil Morgan, Community Development Chair
Campaign Highlights:
$2.2 million in private funds raised for local marketing efforts
4,311 new jobs created
2 new companies recruited
10 industry expansions
13% growth at Austin Peay State University
22% growth in Residential Building Permits
AAU Basketball Tournaments held in Clarksville through 2007 - beating out Disney World; Branson, Missouri; and Lexington, Kentucky
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2005-2008: Aspire Clarksville III - Breaking New Ground for Business
In the fall of 2004, the Clarksville-Montgomery County Economic Development Council took action to move the Aspire Clarksville program into a foundation and call it The Aspire Clarksville Foundation. In August 2005, the Internal Revenue Service officially granted the Foundation its 501c3 designation retro-active to the beginning of the Aspire III Campaign. This new IRS designation has enabled the Foundation to be considered for grants that it would not have otherwise been able to apply for.
Campaign Leadership:
William S. Stuard, Jr., Campaign Chairman
Campaign Highlights:
Created 6,674 new jobs
Recruited 5 new companies, including Dow Corning Corporation and Hemlock Semiconductor L.L.C.
Created $2.65 billion in new facilities capital investment
Created $480 million in existing facilities expansion investment
Increased per capita income to $35,232
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