North Central Council administers the Bureau/Putnam Area Enterprise Zone located in Bureau and Putnam Counties. Covering parts of the communities of Princeton, Hennepin, Ladd, Mark, Spring Valley, and parts of Bureau and Putnam Counties and Some surrounding areas, the enterprise zone targets growing industries by providing assistance along with state and local incentives. The district is expandable to include growing companies wishing to participate in this successful incentive program. 
For more information E-mail Zone Administrator at bpez@ncicg.org 

Available Assistance 

Targeted Financial Assistance: The State of Illinois offers a variety of loan financing with competitive interest rates (as low as 3%) to qualifying firms.

Site Selection: We can assist you in quickly identifying sites most suited to your needs. Depending on your project, the enterprise zone can be expanded to include a site if it is not within the current boundaries. 

Employee Selection and Training: Through our superb local training assistance agency and our area community college, we can assist your firm in selecting and training employees at a substantially reduced cost to your firm. 

Small Business Assistance: The Small Business Development Center at the local community college offers a wealth of information and technical assistance to small and medium sized firms. The Center has established a wide network of information to help you with your needs. 

Local and State Incentives 

In addition to the above assistance, the zone itself offers a wide array of local and state incentives including a near 100 percent, 10 year property tax abatement on industrial/commercial real property improvements, a 6 to 6 1/4% local and state sales tax deduction on locally purchased building materials, a "zone project only" 0.5 % investment tax credit on qualified property/equipment investments, and a $500 job tax credit for "economically disadvantaged" new hires (minimum 5 hires). 

Location 

The Bureau/Putnam Area Enterprise Zone is strategically located to serve the nation's market and is at the heart of the nation's transportation network including: 

• Interstate 80 - The major U.S. east-west interstate transportation route.
• The Illinois River - An important link in the Chicago to New Orleans river transportation network.
• Interstate 180 - Links Interstate 80 to 4,500 acres of one of the top industrial sites in the nation. 
• Interstate 39 - Recently completed in 1992, it offers a major north-south route from Rockford to Bloomington. 
• Interstate 55 - (Within 50 miles of the zone) The major U.S. north-south interstate transportation route. 
• Airports - Three regional and many local airport facilities. 
• Railroads - Major U.S. market rail services including Chicago and North Western Transportation, CSX Transportation, Burlington Northern, and Amtrak. 
• Major Markets - Located within 1 1/2 hours of Chicago, the Quad Cities, Rockford, and Peoria markets; within 5 hours of the St. Louis area market.

View the Enterprise Zone Brochure on your Computer 

The Bureau/Putnam Enterprise Zone Brochure is available to view, save, and print from this site using Adobe Acrobat Reader software (a .pdf viewer). The brochure, from which the information on this page is taken, can be viewed in a grayscale version of the original color brochure. In order to view this brochure, you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader. This software is distributed free of charge, is compatible with any computer system, and is available - click here.

For further information or questions about the Bureau/ Putnam Area Enterpise Zone contact Ben Wilson at 815/875-3396 or at bpez@ncicg.org .