Warren County has been awarded $1,087,460 in SITE funding to extend a waterline to the Hwy 1 Industrial Site from the Golden LEAF Foundation.
The money will be used for construction, engineering, due diligence and potential environmental remediation, county officials said.
According to Warren County Community and Economic Development Director McKinley Perkinson, this award will fund a crucial water extension that will allow future development to occur at a faster rate.
“Having access to water along our entire industrial site increases our site competitiveness because it reduces the length of time and cost for a business to build on our site,” explained Perkinson. “We are thankful to Golden LEAF for awarding us the funding to increase our Hwy 1 Industrial Site’s competitiveness by limiting the amount of time an interested company can get to market.”
Golden LEAF accepts applications from organizations in all counties, but prioritizes awards within counties that have been persistently economically distressed (as demonstrated by County Tier status determined by the N.C. Department of Commerce) and in economically distressed, rural, and tobacco-dependent communities.
The Warren County award is part of $7.5 million in funding from the foundation. The Board awarded $1.2 million to support two projects through the Open Grants Program and another $1,222,460 to support three projects through its SITE Program. The Board also awarded additional funds for Hurricane Helene relief, the Disaster Recovery Grant Program, and the Shell Building Pilot Program.
“Today, the Board awarded funding for projects that will increase workforce preparedness, strengthen agriculture, help increase industrial site preparation and the availability of shell buildings, along with funding for hurricane and disaster relief efforts, all supporting rural communities across North Carolina,” said Scott T. Hamilton, Golden LEAF president and chief executive officer.
For more information about the Hwy 1 Industrial Site, email Perkinson at mckinleyperkinson@warrencountync.gov
For more information about Golden LEAF, visit GoldenLEAF.org.
