Our History

1990

Robertson County Economic Development Board created to administer the proceeds of the newly instituted hotel/motel tax and proactively recruit new business and industry.

1993

The Commission passed a resolution authorizing the Board to negotiate an “Payment-In-Lieu-of-Tax” program to incentivize local business growth.

2008

The Board hired a full-time director and secured office space and administrative support in partnership with the Robertson County Chamber of Commerce.

2013

A county commission resolution established a reserve fund which escrows PILOT receipts to be used for site and infrastructure development at the Board’s direction.

Today

The Board continues to facilitate our economic competitiveness through a variety of programs including workforce development, site development, quality of life initiatives and tourism development.

Margot Fosnes headshot

Phone: 615-308-3380
[email protected]

Meet Our Chief Economic Development Officer

Margot Fosnes is the Chief Economic Development Officer for Robertson County. She was formerly President & CEO for the Robertson County Chamber of Commerce, serving from 2006 through February 2018. She has a long time association with the Chamber, serving on the Board and Executive Committee for eight years and as president of the Chamber in 2001-02. Prior to becoming the chamber executive director in November 2006, she served as Executive Assistant to the General Secretary of the United Methodist Church’s Council on Finance and Administration and was Treasurer of First United Methodist Church in Springfield for ten years.

In her current role, Fosnes is the primary contact for economic development and business retention for Robertson County, working with city and county officials and industrial boards to recruit and retain industry and business to Robertson County.

She is a 2002 graduate of Leadership Middle Tennessee and served on that board for three years. She serves on the boards of Cumberland Region Tomorrow, the Regional Transportation Authority, the Community Foundation of Robertson County, and the Springfield/Robertson County Airport. She is a past president of the Kiwanis Club of Springfield and currently serves as Secretary.

Fosnes was born in Jacksonville, Florida and came to Tennessee in 1975 to continue her education at Vanderbilt University in Nashville. She received a B.A. in Economics, summa cum laude, from Vanderbilt in 1979. She received the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation in 1983 and IOM certification from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Institute for Organizational Management in 2012.

Jonathan Garner headshot

Jonathan Garner, Board Attorney
Attorney, Walker & Garner Attorneys

  • General Civil Litigation
  • Probate, Wills and Estates
  • Domestic and Family Law
  • Business Law

Current Board Members

Jessica Blackburn, Chair
Owner, Crown Paving

Caleb Fuqua, Vice Chair
Owner, Square One Construction

Tony Neal, Secretary / Treasurer
SVP-Commercial Lending, The Farmers Bank

Matt Burnett
Owner, Burnett Real Estate Group

Paul Fuqua
Owner, Shannon Insurance

Whitfield Hamilton
Partner, Panatonni Development

Jinnifer Hollingsworth Johnston
Owner, Five Star Building Group

Willis Jepson
Owner, Jepson Family Farms

Jim Moore
Owner, G.S. Moore & Son

Funding Sources

Our programs are funded by a 7% tax on all overnight stays at hotels, bed and breakfasts and Airbnbs. Each city receives 30% of receipts collected in their city limits to be used for economic development and tourism purposes, and 70% stays with RCEDB for the same purposes.

The Payment in Lieu of Tax (PILOT) program is a tax incentive designed to restructure the tax burden for companies who are interested in relocating or expanding in Robertson County. Instead of paying 100% of the property taxes on their desired location, companies (who are awarded PILOTs) pay a percentage of the taxes due for a set period of years. While this forgoes some tax revenue for the county and city in the near term, Robertson County benefits in the long run as new tax base is added, which would not have been collected had the relocation or expansion not taken place. New PILOT receipts are placed in a reserve fund at the county level, earmarked for use in site and infrastructure development projects.

Recent Success Stories

  • 2020: JRC doubles its Robertson County HQ, adding 50 new white-collar jobs.
  • 2019: Tate Ornamental opens a new facility in White House, with a $6 million investment and 50 new jobs
  • 2019: Airtech announces a 60,000 sf expansion and the addition of 30 new jobs including new technology innovations for the composites industry
  • 2018: Dorman Products expands to a new 800,000+ sf facility in TN-KY Business Park, with a $55 million investment and 215 new jobs
  • 2018: S3 Recycling moves its Nashville operations to the Bransford Business Center in Springfield, creating 25 new jobs and $2.1 million in capital investment
  • 2018: Lowes opens its first direct-to-consumer fulfillment center, adding 600 new jobs and $100 million in capital investment

Supporting Existing & New Industries in Robertson County

Site Development

  • We assist with the purchase and improvement of publicly owned properties, making sure they are “shovel ready.”
  • We evaluate new sites and work with state and regional agencies to find grant funds and use RCED funds as matches for infrastructure development.
  • We keep up-to-date inventory of available buildings and sites.

Workforce Development

  • We maintain the “Work In Robertson” job board.
  • We commissioned  a White Collar Workforce Study by Newmark Knight to identify and quantify the skills and job sectors of our out-commuting residents.
  • We work with Robertson County Chamber and Robertson County Schools to host career/job exploration fairs, job shadowing programs and advocate for new career/technical education programs.
  • We created the Manufacturing Leadership Experience to expose high school students to the breadth of careers available in our local industries.
  • We connect industries with CTE, TCAT and Vol State to develop training programs.