Civil Municipal Magazine Aug 2023

227 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 4, ISSUE 8 TROY, MO. is more than 200 years old, and that park has been there through most of that period.” Located at 971 Monroe St., Fairgrounds Park has four baseball fields, three soccer fields, basketball courts, skating ramps, a tire playground, a traditional playground, and a duck pond, as the mayor pointed out. The park’s name comes from the fact that it was once the home of the annual Lincoln County Fair. Back in the 1940s, it was the scene for local horse races, as Sconce points out. It shouldn’t be confused with the current Lincoln County Fairgrounds, which are located just north of Troy’s city limits. Rounding out the list, the mayor adds, are Weinand and Troy Kiwanis parks and Woods Fort, known for their walking trails, historical significance, and much more. Economic development With Troy representing Lincoln County’s biggest city, as Rodgers reports, most of the local economic growth is occurring in the county seat itself. She adds that Lincoln County as a whole is experiencing the fastest and most significant growth of any county within the St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area. “That includes industrial growth, commercial and residential,” as Rodgers points out. As an example, she cites Toyota Motor- Manufacturing Missouri, located in Troy, and employing some 1,200 people in the creation of cylinder heads for every Toyota vehicle made in North America. The company contributes mightily to the local tax base. “They’re just being a good partner,” says Rodgers. As you might expect, rather than the gravitational pull of planets upon moons and asteroids, large companies attract smaller ones. Rodgers explains that the local Toyota operation draws in other smaller related businesses as well, whether in terms of logistics or light manufacturing. In addition, General Motors also has a nearby facility, and Boeing, the famous airplane company, has one as well. Everything ties in with the greater gravitational pull of what one might call the St. Louis solar system. There are many smaller communities within the economic orbit of this teeming city of more than 300,000 inhabitants. All these factors conspire to place Troy in