Governor and Dixie Chopper

WAVELAND, Ind.. – Calling Dixie Chopper one of America’s great success stories, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels helped commemorate the opening of the new Dixie Chopper Distribution Center Thursday at Waveland.

“Dixie Chopper is one of the great brands of America, and I want the whole world to see that,” Daniels said prior to cutting the ceremonial ribbon on the 150,000-square-foot facility where Recycled Goods and Trucking Co. (RGT) handles distribution requirements for Dixie.

Lauding the partnership of RGT owner Ralph and Shane Jones and their Dixie Chopper counterpart Art Evans, Gov. Daniels said, “There is so much to appreciate here with all of this coming together in moving into this building. I am just here to celebrate and commend those that have done so much for others. I am here to lead the cheers that represent the best among us.

“This,” the governor said of the new facility, “is another asset, another example of Indiana success that I can share as I travel elsewhere.”

Daniels took the podium just after Evans had the audience alternately applauding and laughing as he told of fighting bureaucracy and red tape in trying to start a small business and keep in thriving in 21st century America.

“This is the genius of invention,” Gov. Daniels added in marveling at Evans’ concept of building a commercial-grade zero-turn lawn mower that could last a lifetime. “You see a way to build a better mouse trap and you fight through the bankers and the setbacks to make it a reality. You don’t quit until you see your dream come true.

“If there’s an Art Evans fan club somewhere, I’m a charter member.”

And Hoosier taxpayers are actually owners of Indiana-made Dixie Chopper mowers, the governor reminded his audience.


Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels and Matt Land.

“I am proud that our Buy Indiana program made the right move and started buying our lawn mowers (for use in state parks) from the right company -- Dixie Chopper. I don’t know why it took so long to do that, but I’m glad we’re doing the right thing now.”

Local officials had similar praise for the $4 million project that will benefit not only RGT and Dixie Chopper but also the Town of Waveland and even Montgomery County whose commissioners were aggressive enough to extend tax abatement on the project.

“These are Hoosier-made mowers being exported throughout the country. This is the kind of project that really benefits a community and the state,” Bill Henderson, executive director of Montgomery County Economic Development, said of the facility that sits on a 30-acre site at the northeast corner of State Roads 47 and 59.

The building itself represents a $2.3 million construction project with another $1.2 million in site preparation and other costs involved in concrete, stone, a retention pond and a mammoth propane tank.

RGT and the Joneses have teamed up with Dixie Chopper to provide the logistics for the Putnam County company that supplies the zero-turn mowers to all 50 states and Canada. RGT has developed special two-level trailers custom designed to efficiently transport Dixie Choppers.


Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels and Matt Land.

The Waveland distribution center can hold up to 4,000 mowers, although it will typically have on hand a 1,200-1,500 machine supply, representing about 15 days’ worth of shipping. “This is not a warehouse,” Art Evans cautioned. “This is a staging area where we move mowers in and out.”

"Not only is our new distribution center an investment in the future of Dixie Chopper," Dixie General Manager Jeff Haltom said, "but it is an upgrade to our logistical approach to product movement. The addition of this new facility enables us to better serve our dealers as we continue to grow. We believe that is money well spent."