Commissioners OK Purchase of 84 Acres by Industrial Park

By Cliff Bellamy Special to The Daily Dispatch

The Henderson-Vance Industrial Park will have the potential to add more businesses after the Vance County Board of Commissioners on Monday approved spending $1.7 million to purchase 84 acres next to the park.

The board’s vote also cleared the way for county staff to begin the rezoning of the property for light industrial and general commercial uses.

The $1.7 million will buy two tracts totaling 84.6 acres at the intersection of Bear Pond Road and Commerce Drive. The largest tract, 82.5 acres, was appraised at $19,993 per acre, according to county documents. The smaller tract, 2 acres, is valued at $152,500 per acre.

In January, the county received an N.C. Ready Site Grant of $2.45 million from the state Commerce Department. The grant will be used to build a roadway for access to the land, and to install water and sewer. N.C. Ready Site Grants allow rural communities to build infrastructure, making industrial sites more attractive to investors.

The Mars Iams plant, Carolina Country Snacks, and MGM Products Inc. are among the businesses currently located in the industrial park.

County planners will begin the process of rezoning the large tract for light industrial, and the small tract for general commercial. The rezoning proposal must go to the Planning Board, after which the commissioners must hold a public hearing before approving any rezoning.

The board also approved a resolution that will allow the county to be reimbursed for the land purchase from future financing proceeds.

During a public hearing before the vote, Cheryl Ellington questioned why the industrial park land received such a high appraisal when land she owns five miles from the park received a lower appraisal. Ellington owns 500 acres at the U.S. 1 Bypass and Warrenton Road that was appraised at $4,100 per acre.

Her husband recently died, and she is still trying to settle the estate, Ellington told the commissioners. The land is not for sale, she said. “I’m a fair-minded person, and all I ask for is fairness,” she said. “Something about this is not right.”

In other business, the commissioners:

• Approved a contract totaling $131,450 for new benches for Superior and District Court. Kivett’s Inc. of Clinton will deliver the new benches.
• Approved an upset bid of $770 for purchase of a lot the county owns on Tungsten Mine Road. The property will be sold without warranties, and the buyer is responsible for inspections.