Buncombe County government is working to secure expansion of a manufacturing plant identified in official records only as “Project X.”
The effort would involve the county spending $15.7 million on land and buildings and paying $2.7 million in incentives to the unnamed company, according to legal advertisements paid for by the county. The building to house Project X would be 125,000 square feet.
The company in return would install machinery and equipment worth $126 million and create 52 jobs at a minimum, the ads say.
In a closed session Feb. 5, commissioners discussed a potential incentive “for an existing company that would make a $300 million investment and bring 270 jobs,” meeting minutes say. Officials would not say whether that company is the same one involved in Project X.
Commissioners have scheduled a special meeting for May 14 to hold a public hearing on the project. State law requires that local governments hold such hearings before buying land or selling or leasing it for economic development purposes and that they advertise the meetings at least 10 days in advance.
Click over to read the rest. There’s plenty more intrigue. For example, in a possibly related move, a Nashville, Tenn., company is soliciting bids from contractors to build a freight terminal for the county at an unspecified location on Hendersonville Road, Barrett writes.
6 Comments
My friend’s employer has discussed a huge expansion. This would bring an industry to Asheville that is not performed in any other part of the U.S. and will definitely create and secure a large number of high paying jobs. The risk was also mentioned of moving out if state if the plan does not work. This is a major company and its loss would prove detrimental. Of course, it’s all hush hush until further discussion. And planning takes place. I personally want to know what my tax dollars are being used for but I also know the negative repercussions we would all suffer if this company left the area. It would affect a huge number of people.
[…] County commissioners are planning to spend millions in taxpayers' money on the secret project.www.ashvegas.com/project-x-buncombe-county-to-seek-publi… […]
wish the county would pony-up some loot for my business start-up. i wouldn’t ask for much. speaking of which… didn’t the orange peel get grant money from somebody?
So, the Project X guarantees 52 jobs for $ 18.4 million. That’s 353,000+ per job. Pass.
The whole CT article was convoluted and hard to figure out how many businesses were being discussed.
Over $18 million in “incentives” for a company that will employ 50 people and an “estimated” $5.6 million in tax revenues over 10 years … this does not seem like a good deal no matter how it’s sliced.
Nissan, Amazon?