An action by the Maricopa City Council last night continued slow but steady progress on the forthcoming Industrial Triangle project.

The council members gave City Manager Ben Bitter executive authority to “execute documents, agreements and applications” in pursuit of grant money for Amsterdam, Netherlands-based developer Redevco Solutions to build the $1.4 billion, 680-acre “SMARTRail” park along Maricopa-Casa Grande Highway.

Projects of this scale typically seek state or federal grants, said Quinn Konold, spokesperson for the city government. 

“How many or when, we don’t know, but it’s typical for projects of this size that are going to have this level of economic impact to seek grants,” Konold said. “In order to do that, they need a government entity to serve as their designee.” 

This authority was anticipated among Bitter’s duties as city manager. It can also save some bureaucratic headaches. The council’s action will help speed up the development process as Bitter can act as the council to bypass the municipal voting process. 

“Council usually only meets twice a month,” Konold said. “So, not specific to this item but in general, council often authorizes the city manager to execute actions for efficiency, timeliness and as an expectation of the role.” 

Talk of the Industrial Triangle’s economic impact on the city has ramped up in recent months, especially after Chief Strategy Officer Rick Horst and Chief Economic Development Officer Christian Price announced a call for bids in July.  

The officers at that time named at least two companies interested in utilizing Maricopa’s southern lands and railroad access to bring non-hazardous recycling facilities to the city. Price estimated these first tenants could move in as soon as 2026.