In this edition of the newsletter I wanted to let you know about three new business opportunities that our district is excited to welcome. First is the Triangle North Business Park, and its new access road. Second is the opening of the Shalag Industries Plant in Oxford next week. Lastly is the ribbon cutting of the new Palziv North American plant that will be opening next month in Louisburg.
TRIANGLE NORTH
.jpg)
.jpg)
I had the pleasure of speaking at an event this past Tuesday celebrating a much needed federal grant that was awarded for the benefit of Franklin County. A $1.7 million grant was secured by Congressman Bob Etheridge to build an essential access road for the Triangle North Business Park in Franklin County. This is on top of $500,000 worth of appropriations that former Rep. Lucy Allen and I were able to secure through state funds.
These funds will have a two-fold impact on job creation and economic development in our district. The immediate impact will directly flow from the construction of the access road and the jobs that arise from those construction efforts. Once the road is finished it will open up Triangle North to a wide variety of business and firms. It is estimated that, because of this access road, Triangle North could attract up to $74 million in investments and create thousands of jobs. You can read more about Triangle North and its potential here and here.
These types of infrastructure grants are the exact type of governmental support that can create lasting economic change. These types of economic opportunities can secure a strong economic future for our district, creating jobs that will be long lasting and well paying.
SHALAG INDUSTRIES
This upcoming Thursday, I will have the pleasure of attending the ribbon cutting for the new Shalag Industries plant in Oxford. The company is a supplier of non-woven fabrics in the hygiene and sanitary wipes markets and will be investing $17 million in its new plant. The Granville County location will be employing 42 persons. The new jobs will pay an average annual wage of $39,966, not including benefits. This annual wage is higher than the Granville County average annual wage of $33,020.
The establishment of the plant was made possible, in part, by an $110,000 grant from the One North Carolina Fund. The fund currently consists of nonrecurring appropriations made by the N.C. General Assembly for companies seeking to undertake new expansion or locate new operations in the state. For more information on the One North Carolina Fund, please see this website. For more information on Shalag Industries itself, please visit its website here.
I am excited to see this new company open its doors and begin operation here in our district. North Carolina is such an attractive destination for businesses like this because of our exemplary workforce. These new jobs will be such a boost to our district, and these are the type of jobs that I will continue to work to provide for our district and our state.
PALZIV PLANT
Sometime next month, Palziv North American will hold the opening ceremonies for its manufacturing plant in Louisburg. Palziv North American will produce polyethylene foam blocks and pellets used in vehicle insulation, construction materials and other applications. It will take over the location that previously housed the Hon Corporation.
As you know, the Hon Corporation announced over a year ago that it would be closing its doors because of decreased demand. Our state government work diligently to help Hon keep its doors open, but when it became a certainty that the plant would close, the state began working to find a replacement company to take over the plant. That replacement turned out to be Palziv North American.
Palziv North American will be investing $7 million in Franklin County. The Franklin County location will be employing 72 persons. The new jobs will pay an average annual wage of $34,167 which is higher than the Franklin County average annual wage of $33,178. The plan was also made possible through the One North Carolina Fund, specifically through a $250,000 grant. Please see this article for more information.
As you can see, our state government is working hard in our district to promote economic and job growth. Creating employment opportunities is my number one goal. I will continue to work on your behalf to create these types of opportunities. They will serve to bolster our state’s economy for both the short term and for the future.
As always, I look forward to your thoughts and comments on the issues discussed in the newsletter. Please feel free to respond to any issue whether it was covered in the newsletter or not. It is an honor to serve as your State Senator, and I will do everything in my power to live up to that honor.
Sincerely,
Doug Berger