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In 2015 , UNC Health Care System opened a new medical campus in Hillsborough . The campus
<br /> includes 50 acute care beds, an 18 -bed intensive care unit, six operating rooms, two procedure rooms , an
<br /> emergency department and outpatient medical and surgical specialty services , including urgent care ,
<br /> imaging and oncology . The new facilities were constructed at a cost of approximately $200 million . In
<br /> 2021 , UNC Health Care System opened a new medical office building in the County . The facility consists
<br /> of a 150,000 square-foot medical building and a I , 000- space parking garage . The new 375 , 000-square foot
<br /> UNC Health Care Surgical Tower opened in August 2024 .
<br /> The County is also the place of residence for many technical, professional and executive people
<br /> who work in the Research Triangle Park and neighboring cities of Durham , Raleigh , and Burlington . The
<br /> Research Triangle refers to an area located among three municipalities : Chapel Hill , Durham and Raleigh .
<br /> In addition to The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, universities located in these municipalities
<br /> include Duke University and North Carolina Central University in the City of Durham and North Carolina
<br /> State University in the City of Raleigh . The proximity of these universities makes the Research Triangle
<br /> area well- suited to many types of research activities .
<br /> The Research Triangle Park (the "Park"), located ten miles east of the County , contains 7 , 000 acres
<br /> of land which has been reserved for research and research- oriented manufacturing . Since its inception in
<br /> the 1950 ' s , approximately 385 private and governmental organizations have located facilities in the Park
<br /> and currently employ more than 55 ,000 people . The largest employers in the Park include : Fidelity
<br /> Investments, IBM Corporation, Cisco Systems, Inc . , NetApp, Inc . , GlaxoSmithKline, UBS (Credit Suisse),
<br /> RTI International, U . S . Environmental Protection Agency and Lenovo . Because of its close proximity to
<br /> the County and the fact that many of the Park ' s employees reside in the County, the impact of the Park on
<br /> the County ' s economy is significant.
<br /> In addition to the Park, the County has several areas within its borders that are focused on industry
<br /> and manufacturing . Several manufacturing firms are located along Interstate Highway 85 in the western
<br /> portion of the County, and the County is targeting this area for future growth of industrial and commercial
<br /> concerns . Additionally, the County has designated over 2,450 acres in three strategically-placed areas along
<br /> Interstates 85 and 40 as Economic Development Districts . The County ' s location, midway between the
<br /> Piedmont Triad and Research Triangle metropolitan areas, makes these sites extremely attractive . The
<br /> districts offer development potential for light industrial , warehouse/flex space, office, retail and business
<br /> service . Numerous tracts , ranging in size from 20 to 100 acres or more, are available .
<br /> The County is also seeking to spur economic development by providing funds through the Article
<br /> 46 Sales Tax to finance the development of utility extensions for commercial entities . The County uses the
<br /> Article 46 Sales Tax to provide a portion of the upfront water/sewer infrastructure costs for businesses . The
<br /> first project funded by the County was a $4 million water and sewer infrastructure project in the
<br /> Mebane/Buckhorn area, on land owned by the County . The site is being developed as an industrial park .
<br /> Morinaga American Foods, Inc . , the American affiliate of the Japanese candy maker of Hi-Chew candies
<br /> purchased 21 acres of land and has constructed a manufacturing plant that initially employed 90 people .
<br /> The 100 , 000 square foot plant opened in 2015 , representing a $48 million investment within the County .
<br /> In July 2019 , Swiss- Swedish company ABB announced an expansion to its existing 400, 000 square
<br /> foot manufacturing facility in the County . The company said it would spend $40 million over five years to
<br /> build a new 200, 000 square foot manufacturing facility and create approximately 400 new manufacturing
<br /> jobs at the site . This investment has now been completed , creating approximately 400 electrical assembly
<br /> jobs . ABB has its United States headquarters in nearby Cary , North Carolina . ABB ' s previous acquisition
<br /> of an existing GE manufacturing facility now makes it the County ' s largest private employer.
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