Burke County Board of Commissioners voted Tuesday at a special called meeting to authorize the county’s application for a building reuse and restoration grant for a county-owned building on Wamsutta Mill Road.
Code-named Project Charlie, the economic development project could create 56 jobs, Burke Development Inc. President Scott Darnell said.
The North Carolina Economic Development Center offers building reuse and restoration grants to drive economic activity and job creation by reusing vacant buildings.
Further details about Project Charlie cannot be released yet, County Manager Bryan Steen said.
Darnell said typically counties apply for building reuse grants and a private developer owns the property, but in this case the county is the applicant and owner of the property.
The county would be responsible for providing a 3-percent match, with a maximum of $14,400 for a $480,000 grant request, Darnell said.
That grant would pay for 50 percent of all building renovations, Darnell said.
Because the county owns the building, it would also put up a $480,000 match for building renovations, Darnell said.
Improvements to the building include repairs to the parking lot, repairing and repainting the exterior and interior, reconfiguration of offices and plumbing and electrical repairs.
Commissioner Bruce Hawkins said, “Basically this grant will allow us to improve the building that the county owns and then it also, with the improvements, has the potential of creating some jobs.”
Commissioners voted unanimously to approve the grant application.
The board’s next regular meeting is 6 p.m. Tuesday in the board room of the county services building.
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement