Minutes 04-23-2015 - Laserfiche WebLink

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• Amanda Garner assists the department director in "new business recruitment" regarding the attraction of new business prospects in manufacturing, commercial and retail development. • Tina Love is the new office administrator. Utility infrastructure progress in the Economic Development Districts • Over $4 million in water and sewer lines have been placed in the Buckhorn Economic Development District (EDD) to begin building a series of backbone infrastructure to serve the County's largest region zoned for business recruitment. The success to attract the Morinaga facility was enabled by the one-quarter cent sales tax for economic development that funded this initial water and sewer system. • Additional water and sewer line expenditures will be needed to serve priority sites in the Hillsborough Economic Development District (commercially zoned properties outside of the Waterstone development). General business recruitment activity throughout Orange County • Larger industrial sites in the Buckhorn Road and Hillsborough areas are being regularly proposed to active prospect leads generated by the State of N.C.'s business recruiters. Sites in the County are actively being visited by industries and developers seeking new business locations. • The County's total inventory of empty industrial, warehouse and office buildings available to attract new business prospects has notably increased, with most of this new inventory being located in Hillsborough. For the first time in many years, the County and Hillsborough now have available capacity to market large square footage facilities (Eno River Mill, & the Southern Season warehouse) to large business prospects. Comment Regarding "A Southern Season" Warehouse in Hillsborough • Facility owners Susan Green & Michael Falk have hired a major real estate brokerage firm, CBRE Industrial Triad, to market the 90,000 square foot building to new users. • Orange County Economic Development has generated two prospects that have recently toured the facility. Realtor CBRE Industrial has also generated several site visits by investor prospects & operating companies seeking warehouse space. • Orange County Economic Development office markets the building on the department web site, and with the State of N.C.'s industrial site selection consultants. • Orange County Economic Development worked for 2 years to meet with Southern Season's management in an to attempt to show available real estate sites in Hillsborough, and the County, and offer to quote potential financial incentives in order to retain the warehouse. However, despite the County and Hillsborough having suitably attractive and competitive site locations, the company showed little interest to consider the local options. The company recently selected a fully developed business park (N.C. Industrial Center) which has a 100,000 square foot shell building and 8-10 existing warehouse operations located in Mebane. Evelyn Lloyd arrived at 7:35pm Kathleen Ferguson asked what the Town of Hillsborough can do to support the County's economic development activities.