Governor Stein Announces $126 Million of Investment and 96 New Jobs for Rural North Carolina

Today Governor Josh Stein announced that North Carolina’s Rural Infrastructure Authority (RIA) has approved eight grant requests for local governments totaling $4,085,208. The grants include commitments to create a total of 396 jobs, 300 of which were previously announced. As a result of these grants, the additional investment in these projects, from private and public sources, is expected to reach more than $126.2 million. 

“North Carolina’s small towns continue to attract investment because they are great places to live, raise a family, and do business,” said Governor Josh Stein. “These grants contribute to our state’s positive momentum by making necessary infrastructure improvements that will bring good-paying jobs and help communities thrive.”

The RIA is supported by the rural economic development team at the North Carolina Department of Commerce. RIA members review and approve funding requests from local communities. Funding comes from a variety of specialized grant and loan programs offered and managed by the North Carolina Department of Commerce’s Rural Economic Development Division, which is led by Assistant Secretary for Rural Development Reginald Speight. Grants support a variety of activities, including infrastructure development, building renovation, building expansion, building demolition, and site improvements. 

“North Carolina’s new strategic economic development plan, First in Opportunity, puts the need to modernize and fortify our infrastructure front and center,” said N.C. Commerce Secretary Lee Lilley. “We are proud to partner with rural communities across the state by providing these tools to support infrastructure, whether that takes the form of water, downtown districts, health care access or industrial site improvements.”

The RIA approved four grant requests under the state’s Building Reuse Program. The grants fall into two categories: 

Vacant Building Category  

• City of Lexington (Davidson County): A $250,000 grant will support the reuse of a 214,592-square-foot building in Lexington. At this site, Supreme Nonwoven Industries will establish its U.S. hub of operations. The company, a manufacturer of nonwoven textiles for the automotive, construction, and manufacturing industries, plans to create 50 jobs through the overall project, while 34 of the jobs and an investment of $569,941 are tied to this grant. 
• Gaston County: A $272,000 grant will support the reuse of a 550,000-square-foot building in McAdenville. The facility will be occupied by Textum OPCO, LLC, an advanced textiles and composites manufacturer focused on carbon-carbon composites, including carbon woven fabrics and 3D preforms used in performance aerospace and defense applications. This project is expected to create 34 jobs, with an investment of $23,074,802.  
• Rockingham County: A $400,000 grant will support the reuse of a 125,000-square-foot building in Reidsville. At this location, Talalay Global, Inc., a manufacturer of latex mattresses, mattress components, mattress toppers, and pillows, plans to create 52 jobs while investing $725,000. 

Rural Health Category  

• Town of Taylorsville (Alexander County): A $125,000 grant will support the reuse of a 3,100-square-foot building, where VitalNow Urgent Care will offer comprehensive, multi-service outpatient health care. The project is set to create 10 jobs, with an investment of $166,571. 

The Building Reuse Program provides grants to local governments to renovate vacant buildings, renovate and/or expand buildings occupied by existing North Carolina companies, and renovate, expand, or construct health care facilities that will lead to the creation of new jobs in Tier 1 and Tier 2 counties, as well as in rural census tracts of Tier 3 counties. 

The RIA approved one grant request under the state’s federally funded Community Development Block Grant – Economic Development program: 

• City of Hendersonville (Henderson County): A $1,862,000 grant will support infrastructure improvements for a site at which BorgWarner, a global product leader of sustainable mobility solutions, is expanding operations. The upgrades will include a 20,000-linear-foot looped extension of a 12-inch water main, which will enhance available fire flow for the sprinkler system and provide continuity of service by establishing redundant water feed to the site. The overall project is expected to create 378 jobs with a private investment of $100 million, with 266 of the jobs tied to this grant. 

The Community Development Block Grant program is a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) program administered in part by N.C. Commerce. CDBG’s economic development funds provide grants to local governments for creating and retaining jobs. Project funding is based on the number of jobs to be created and the level of economic distress of applicant communities. 

The RIA approved one grant request under the state’s Industrial Development Fund – Utility Account program: 

• Caldwell County: A $709,508 grant will help the county provide sewer infrastructure improvements to support the development of more than 1,000 acres at the Foothills Regional Airport Industrial Park. The airport is strategically located on the border line of Burke and Caldwell counties and represents one of the region’s most significant opportunities for large-scale industrial development.   

The Industrial Development Fund – Utility Account provides grants to local governments located in the 80 most economically distressed counties of the state, which are classified as either Tier 1 or Tier 2. Funds may be used for publicly owned infrastructure projects that are reasonably expected to result in new job creation. The IDF – Utility Account is funded through a process tied to the state’s signature Job Development Investment Grant (JDIG) program. When JDIG-awarded companies choose to locate or expand in a Tier 2 or Tier 3 county, a portion of that JDIG award is channeled into the Utility Account. 

The RIA approved two grant requests under the state’s Rural Downtown Economic Development program. The grants fall into two categories: 

Public Buildings Category 

• Town of Badin (Stanly County): A $241,700 grant will support the renovation of a 5,400-square-foot, 109-year-old building that was formerly a hospital. The grant will help transform the facility into a community meeting and event space. Improvements include new flooring, paint, ceiling repairs, roof, windows, updated electrical and lighting, and ADA accessibility. This project is expected to leverage an additional investment of $12,085. 

Public Infrastructure Category 

• City of Asheboro (Randolph County): A $225,000 grant will help the city rehabilitate 450 linear feet on North Street and Trade Street, including installing new sidewalks, curbs, and gutters and burying power lines. The overall streetscape project is set to include pedestrian and accessibility improvements, traffic calming and street design, and lighting improvements. The grant is expected to leverage an additional investment of $1,712,788. 

The Rural Downtown Economic Development Grants program provides grants to local governments to support downtown revitalization and economic development initiatives. These grants are intended to help local governments grow and leverage downtown districts as assets for economic growth, economic development, and prosperity by providing public improvements to help retain businesses and leverage main street assets for community-wide use. 

In addition to reviewing and approving funding requests, the N.C. Rural Infrastructure Authority formulates policies and priorities for grant and loan programs administered by the Commerce Department’s Rural Economic Development team. Its 17 voting members are appointed by the Governor, Speaker of the House, and Senate President Pro Tem. The North Carolina Secretary of Commerce serves as an ex officio member of the authority. 

Visit the Rural Economic Development Division webpage for more information.