August 30, 2006

Published in Wake Forest, NC

            Atkins was the speaker for the Wake Forest Chamber of Commerce’s economic development taskforce Tuesday afternoon.

            A certified site plus economic incentives helped Holly Springs land the Novartis plant, but it was not easy, Atkins said. “Holly Springs had the only certified site in the county,” he said, but ten projects looked at the 168-acre site before Novartis decided to move there.

            A certified site under the state Department of Commerce guidelines must have at least 10 acres, access on a state highway rated for tractor-trailers, a topographic survey, appropriate zoning in a municipal jurisdiction, an environmental assessment, sufficient utilities (electric, natural gas, water, sewer) and telecommunications service.

            With those, and a number of other assets, the site can be called “shovel-ready.”

            “What we’re going to be doing is working with all the communities in the county,” Atkins said, “to see if there are some parcels in your city limits or planning jurisdiction that you may be able to identify or set aside for industry to build the tax base or employment opportunities.” The question is, he said, does the town want to set aside some sites for job creation?

            When a town has a site, Wake County may be willing to set aside some county funds to help with the wetland delineation if there is a stream or wetland on the site. Towns may also be able to get a discount on some upfront engineering work in exchange for later work on the site. “Maybe a developer will want to put a little money in,” Atkins said.

            Sites should be at least 50 acres. Atkins said it has been wonderful to have Novartis and Fidelity agree to move to Wake County, “but they took off the shelf over 400 acres of property.

            “My concern is that the shelf is getting kind of bare. We’ve got to put some product back on the shelf.”

            Right now there is only one industrial site larger than 200 acres, Atkins said, and that has a quarry in the middle of it. “In 2000, there were fifteen.”

            Town governments have to decide whether they want mostly residential development or industry, and the next decision is about incentives.

            “Incentives are becoming a larger and larger part of what we do, particularly for big projects. You have to do it just to stay in competition,” Atkins said.

            Currently, if a project creates 50 new jobs and adds $100 million to the tax books, the company is eligible for a 2.25 percent cash grant. Wake County will only match what a town offers in incentives.

            Mark Fleming, the Wake Forest chamber’s executive director, said the town is about to update its land use plan. The question is, he said, “how do we grow between here and Rolesville?”

            “It is a land use plan issue, and it may take a long time for it to come along. I don’t know when the next big project’s coming,” Atkins said.

            Dick Monteith asked questions about smaller parcels, 25 acres or so, for office parks.

            “Most want to build a campus. Most are looking for something larger than twenty-five acres,” Atkins said. “I think the real value is in identifying those sites that you can offer to a private developer.”     

            Atkins said the county is blessed in having developers who will build flex and warehouse space that people want to lease. The problem is that many larger companies do not want to lease. “They want to have their own piece of dirt.”

            The industries moving south “are different than they were ten years ago,” Atkins said. They are moving out of the Northeast and Midwest because those areas are very expensive for them and for their employees.

            Bob Pace said the town has lost its largest industries in the last few years, and the desirable sites are to the north. “Let’s see if we can’t discretely move into Franklin County.”

            Atkins, working with the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce, is responsible for helping all the county chambers and towns attract industry. The result is an economy of scale while towns also play a part in their own development. “It’s harder to tell which part of the county you’re in. The thing that sets a community apart is its downtown.”

            The taskforce members also agreed to hold a lunch meeting for an economic development summit similar to one held a few years ago and to work on in-town/out-of-town integration to subdue any conflicts between businesses out of the town center and downtown.

            They will encourage the Downtown Revitalization Corporation to work on a loan pool for downtown business owners. The chamber’s ambassadors will help to survey chamber members about business conditions. The chamber will encourage the land use plan steering committee to investigate establishing a certified site.