MLE Enterprises, Inc., based in Terre Haute and Bloomfield, has announced plans to construct an office/production facility in the Greene County part of the WestGate at Crane Technology Park near Crane Village.

The eight-year-old firm will construct a 6,000 to 8,000 square feet multi-use office complex that should be operational about 90 days after a groundbreaking ceremony is held, according to J.R. Davis, the firm's general manager.

It will be the first WestGate building located within Greene County's sector of the tri-county tech park.

Davis estimated the company investment in the new facility to be about $500,000.

"We are really excited about it. We think it's (WestGate) really going to take off. Greene County has a lot of forward-looking people. Those people have the best interest of Greene County at heart."

MLE Enterprises, Inc. (MLE) is a certified Woman Owned Business Enterprise (WBE) and HUBZONE Small Business Enterprise that provides government and commercial clients with construction programs, project management, quality control and inspections as well as environmental solutions, including asbestos, lead and mold abatement.

Importantly, MLE is a "prime contractor" under Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) SeaPort Enhanced (Seaport-e) program for Zones 3, 4 and 5.

NAVSEA procures more than a half billion dollars of Professional Support Services (PSS) each year for its headquarters' Directorates, Program Executive Offices (PEOs), and field activities -- including operations at neighboring NSA Crane.

SeaPort Enhanced (SeaPort-e) has made electronic procurement of engineering, financial, and program management support services a reality. Using SeaPort-e, the Navy Virtual SYSCOM (VS) Commanders (NAVAIR, NAVSEA, NAVSUP and SPAWAR) have adopted an integrated approach to contracting for support services. The SeaPort-e portal provides a standardized means of issuing competitive solicitations among a large and diverse community of approved contractors, as well as a platform for awarding and managing performance-based task orders.

Davis says being a SeaPort contractor is a major reason the firm looked to locate at WestGate.

About three years ago, the firm bought the seven-acre property between Scotland and Crane Village. It connects with Greene County's 52-acre tract of land in the WestGate Technology Park -- a joint project of Greene, Daviess and Martin counties.

WestGate, which includes more than 300 acres, is the state's only certified multi-county technology park. It lies where the three counties meet near Crane Village.

"Back a few years ago we bought that property down there in hopes of building a building. Once we got involved in things more than construction such as SeaPort, we decided that was the place to be," Davis said.

He worked closely with Greene County Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Joan Bethell, along with WestGate Authority members from Greene County, John Mensch, Ron Toon and Brian Sparks as well as WestGate Attorney Marilyn Hartman.

Davis and MLE officials also said they've worked with members of the Greene County Council in putting the project together in his home county.

Davis also consulted with the tech park developers from WestGate at Crane, Development Company, LLC, and he said they are likewise excited about what MLE plans to do.

"I think with what is going on down there, I think there is stuff that so many people in Greene County don't even know about and don't even realize that can happen because of companies like SAIC and EG & G and others," Davis said.

Davis is a native of the Solsberry area.

In its early days in Greene County, the firm was located in the old Stereo City building on East Main Street in Bloomfield.

"We're in construction management and quality control," he said.

"What a large contractor will do is hire someone like us to provide an independent third party inspection service. We do construction also. Two years ago, we started an environmental side of the business. We do asbestos, lead and mold abatements."

SeaPort-e is the key reason why Davis feels his company will be a good fit for the new tech park.

"That is kind of why we fit into the tech park. Crane is obviously where the action going to be for SeaPort contractors in the immediate future and that is where we wanted to be. We are outgrowing our space in Bloomfield."

The decision to locate at Crane will allow the company to service its customers better, according to Davis.

"Back a few years ago we bought that property down there in hopes of build a building down there, once we got involved in things more than construction such as SeaPort, we decided that was the place to be."

MLE's CEO for the SeaPort project, Ray Darnell, agrees that locating at WestGate is a good fit for his company.

"The proximity to Crane and also to be linked to the growth that is in and around this county and to be linked to the other companies there (at WestGate) is key," Darnell said.

The MLE corporate administration office is currently in Terre Haute and MLE Business Management and Operational Control office has been located on North Franklin Street in Bloomfield for about two years.

The Bloomfield office will be relocated to the new site at WestGate when construction is completed, Davis said.

"We hope to have that (building) constructed within 90 days. We want to be inside within 90 days."

The groundbreaking will be in the next month.

The firm currently has 35 employees and plans to increase the workforce 50 to 70 percent in the next year.

"This (building project) was an idea of J.R. (Davis), our owner (founder Mary Lutrrell) and mine. Together this was a vision for the future that were hoping to put together and it's finally come to fruition," Darnell said.

Darnell anticipates that about 20 employees will be working at the WestGate facility.

Davis agrees the company is growing. He says there are 18 full-time employees and in two years the workforce will expand to 40 or 50.

"We hope to more than double in the next two years."

The company has performed work throughout the central, midwestern and gulf states.

The firm's list of client partners includes:

* Public Works Department, Naval Support Activity, Crane

* Marine Corps Reserve Center, Terre Haute

* Kansas City District, Corps of Engineers

* ACA Fort Leonard Wood (MO), Directorate of Contracting

* Department of Natural Resources, Monongahela National Forest, Elkins, West Virginia

* U.S. Coast Guard Civil Engineering Unit, Cleveland, Ohio

Department of the Air Force, Kentucky Air National Guard, Louisville

* Veterans Affairs Administration, Marion, Ind.

* Vanguard Contractors, Paducah, Ky.

* Facility Management & Engineering Inc., Evansville

* Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), Bloomfield

* Weddle Brothers Construction Co., Bloomington

* Wight Construction, South Bend

* Harrell Contracting Inc., Worthington

* Town Council of Worthington

* Garmong Construction Services, Terre Haute

* Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Indianapolis Properties, Inc.

* North Lawrence Community Schools, Bedford

* CFC Construction Inc., West Baden

* Aigner Construction, Boonville

* Kappa Delta Sorority, Bloomington

Earlier this week, MLE officials met with members of the WestGate Authority and last week showed their plans to members of the Greene County Redevelopment Commission.

"We outlined what we are going to do. We have the financing in place and we've got some potential opportunities for growth so we are trying to exploit all of those opportunities," Darnell said.

"We not entering into this deal with any trepidation. It's well thought out and well planned out and we're looking forward to joining the group down there (at WestGate)."

"It's going to be a split building of an office complex and a production facility with work stations. We eventually plan to expand the production facility into a full blown production facility that handles the logistics to transport the inventory of parts and management for varying (NSWC) Crane codes."

The firm currently has under way construction projects for NASA in New Orleans, Fort Sill, OK and a U.S. Air Force base in Missouri as well as several projects at NSA Crane.

"One of the reasons for the new growth into the new building is the diversification and the addition of new opportunities for growth. We are entering into the consulting business world now and have established teaming agreements with major companies," Darnell stated.

Darnell also announced that a possible partner in the new building will be Fink Enterprises, a computer consulting informational technology company in Bloomfield.

"There is an emerging information technology and solutions opportunities there too," he said.

MLE also maintains a storage facility on East Main Street in Bloomfield that will continue, Darnell said.

"We'd like everyone to know that we are here to grow and help everything in and around the community to grow as well."

WestGate at Crane Development Company, LLC contracted with the WestGate Authority in 2007 to take the lead role in the park's design, development and marketing.

Rutherford Construction Company is heading up the general construction team.

The developers have agreed to make a multi-million dollar investment in the project they believe will be a state, national and international showcase on the doorsteps to one of the state's most significant economic development resources -- Naval Support Activity (NSA) Crane, a $4 billion dollar a year military operation.

A "village" campus concept has been designed that will feature retail, commercial, industrial as well as residential development. It will be surrounded by a picturesque southern Indiana landscape that will retain the existing wooded areas.

Nature walking paths and trails, parks, retail shops, a hotel-conference center, a business center, an array of offices, classrooms, manufacturing and warehousing space will be available.

The draft plan features construction of an impressive circular roundabout entrance way using State Road 558 off of U.S. 231 as a gateway to a campus park setting. The group also plans to build a large scale recreational park.

WestGate now has two buildings up and running -- Crane Federal Credit Union and EG & G Technical Services -- both located in the Daviess County sector.

Construction on SAIC's new building and incubator center in the Martin County sector is progressing and expected to be open some time later this year.

Construction on a fourth building -- a 17,300 square feet tech center for Crane Technology, Inc. (CTI) -- is about ready to get under way.

Officials expect that facility, located in Daviess County, to be up and running in the less than 12 months.