|
Economic Development News
Lowe’s
unveils plans to build distribution center in Northampton
County
Lowe’s
announced that it will construct a regional distribution
center on a 225-acre site on N.C. Highway 46 near Garysburg in
Northampton County (see map above). The center is
expected to employ 600 workers at full operation, according to
company officials and Charles Shaw, chairman of the North
Carolina’s Northeast regional economic development
partnership.
“Today we’re proud to welcome yet another world-class
company to Northeastern North Carolina,” said Shaw.
“Commerce officials, Northampton County and the Northeast
Partnership all had one bottom-line objective in the
recruitment of the Lowe’s facility -- bringing quality jobs
and investment to Northeastern North Carolina. This project is
a tremendous win not just for Northampton County, but also for
the entire state of North Carolina.”
“Northampton County is a perfect location for our ninth
strategically located distribution center, with its high local
work ethic, county support, and excellent highway access, so
we can better serve customers in the Mid-Atlantic,” said Lee
Herring, Lowe’s senior vice president of distribution. “We
pride ourselves on being good North Carolina citizens and the
addition of this facility will bring our total investment in
the state to $1.5 billion.”
The 1.3 million square-foot regional distribution facility in
Northampton County will serve five Mid-Atlantic States.
Lowe’s will invest an estimated $59 million in land,
building, and equipment in Northampton County. Lowe’s is the
13th largest retailer in the U.S. and the 34th largest
retailer in the world with more than 680 stores in 40 states.
With annual sales exceeding $18.8 billion Lowe’s is the
world’s second-largest home improvement retailer. A Fortune
200 company, Lowe’s employs more than 100,000 people.
ESC
reports mixed news on local unemployment
Unemployment
rates fell in about half of North Carolina’s counties in
April and rose in the other half, according to the state
Employment Security Commission. Tyrrell County had the
state’s highest unemployment rate in April, at 13.3 percent.
Orange County had the lowest, at 1.6 percent. The unemployment
rates for the Metropolitan Statistical Areas for April,
compared with March, were:
-
Asheville,
3.2 percent, up from 3.1 percent
-
Charlotte/Gastonia/Rock
Hill, NC/SC, 3.7 percent, down from 3.8 percent
-
Fayetteville,
4.7 percent, up from 4.6 percent
-
Goldsboro,
4.8 percent, unchanged
-
Greensboro/Winston-Salem/High
Point, 3.8 percent, down from 4.1 percent
-
Greenville,
5.5 percent, up from 5.3 percent
-
Hickory/Morganton/Lenoir,
4.5 percent, unchanged
-
Jacksonville,
3.8 percent, down from 4.0 percent
-
Raleigh/Durham/Chapel
Hill, 2.4 percent, up from 2.2 percent
-
Rocky
Mount, 6.6 percent, up from 6.1 percent
- Wilmington, 3.6 percent, up
from 3.5 percent
Return to Page One
|
