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Narnia Studios moving across Main to historic Ewbank building

Mills River Business

Ask Matt ... where factories could locate

Q. Do we have any prime industrial sites left in Henderson County and if so where are they? Yes, we still have sites, actually a bunch. I sat down with Brittany Brady, president of the Partnership (also known as the Henderson County Partnership for Economic Development). Brady said there are 17 industrial sites actively being promoted by the Partnership. For this story I chose five that I consider prime sites because they have some or all utilities in place, good road access and are 15 acres or greater. Let's take a look. The Hudgens site encompasses 107 acres on McMurray Road near Bloomfield's (dish barn). It is plainly visible from the Interstate. It offers both water and sewer and more than half of the tract is already zoned industrial. Beverly-Hanks has the site listed for $18,360,000 (recently reduced). The property is about as flat as you can find here and can easily be developed. The Garrison Lane site includes 48 acres located behind Cracker Barrel and Appleland Business Park on Upward Road. It has access to water and sewer. You may know this property as High Hope Dirt and Mulch, a 50-year old business operated by the Garrison family. There is a high hill in the middle of the property with a lot of dirt missing. The sales price is $4.8 million. Ferncliff Park in Mills River has two prominent tenants — Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. and GF Linamar. Ferncliff has 76 acres available that can be split into three or four industrial sites. Once part of the vast land holdings of the Westfeldt family of Rugby Grange, the property contained a summer home the family called Ferncliff. One of the parcels has "back door" access to the Asheville Regional Airport, which is a rare amenity. All sites are "NC Certified" which means they have passed a rigorous prequalification process. You can buy the whole 76 acres for a cool $9 million. Broadpointe Industrial Park on Fanning Field Road off N.C. 280 has a 15-acre combined industrial site for sale. It's use for a large industry is somewhat hindered because of the power line that bisects the property. The price tag is $1.4 million. Taproot Dairy Farm on Butler Bridge Road is a mega-site totaling 320 acres although 90 are in the flood plain. It's zoned commercial and would need to be rezoned for industry. The site is easily viewable from I-26. Taproot has utilities either on site or nearby but road access for 18-wheelers may be problematic without a new interchange. That aside, the property can be subdivided and it has long been called "a developers dream." Taproot is currently owned by the Johnston family and the asking price is a cool $20 million. The next closest mega industrial site in the state is in the Greensboro area. Sites are important but new industry likes workforce skills and convenience too. Brady said that a potential industry frequently asks, "What's your 30-minute drive time?" This is because, while the commuting time for production workers is typically 20 to 30 minutes, higher paying workers will drive 45 to 60 minutes. Brady's staff can easily plot out commuting distances for an interested party. Job training is an issue locally because of the labor shortage. "Employers look for trainable workers who can move up the ladder quickly," said Brady. "The high schools and BRCC are part of the pipeline for filling those jobs." * * * * * Send questions to askmattm@gmail.com.     Read Story »

North Carolina Business

Entegra to merge with Knoxville-based Smartbank

SmartFinancial Inc., the parent company of SmartBank, and Entegra Financial Corp., the parent company of Entegra Bank, have signed a merger agreement under which Entegra will combine with SmartFinancial in a strategic merger of equals.   Read Story »

Asheville Business

Stein blesses Mission sale after negotiating sustained rural coverage

After negotiating changes to ensure sustained hospital facilities in rural counties and greater geographic representation of a new health care trust, North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein announced Wednesday that he would not object to HCA’s acquisition of Mission Health System’s assets.   Read Story »

Hendersonville Business

Two Pardee physicians named 'America's Best'

Pardee UNC Health Care physicians Chris Parsons and James M. Radford have been named among the Best Doctors in America for 2017-2018. The prestigious recognition marks the second and eighth times, respectively, that Drs. Parsons and Radford have earned this honor.   Read Story »

Hendersonville Business

City may reduce buffer between dog kennels and homes

The city could allow overnight dog boarding closer to homes if the Hendersonville City Council OKs a zoning code amendment.   Read Story »

Henderson County Business

El Paso owner opens Mariscos seafood restaurant

The first clue that Mariscos is unlike its sister restaurants is what’s missing. When you sit down, no basket of tortilla chips arrives, nor bowls of sauce. What’s up?   Read Story »

Laurel Park Business

O'Cains' next chapter is for the birds

As mayor of Laurel Park, Carey O’Cain helped guide the development of Rhododendron Lake Nature Park. The Audubon Society and National Geographic had designated 2018 as the Year of the Bird, O’Cain noted early last year as he talked about the large variety of birds visiting the lake and the bluebird boxes that attracted nesting birds. Lutrelle O’Cain’s work focused on four-legged animals, as executive director of the Blue Ridge Humane Society.   Read Story »

Hendersonville Business

Cask & Vine brings stylish pub fare (plus 40 bourbons) to Main Street

Steve Bevins has cooked everything from fast food to high-end steaks to upscale Chinese. Until recently he ran his own kitchen, as the head chef at Carolina Bistro at Cummings Cove Golf & Country Club.   Read Story »

Mills River Business

Mills River board OKs expansion that has split High Vista homeowners

MILLS RIVER — The Mills River Town Council on Thursday upheld a decision by the town planning board that OK’d a development plan that would add 42 units at the High Vista subdivisions, including 18 duplexes.More than two dozen members of High Vista's homeowners association organized to fight the expansion and hired an attorney who presented their appeal during the town council meeting Thursday night. The Town Board voted unanimously to uphold the Planning Board’s October decision to approve the plans by High Vista Finance, of Jacksonville, Florida, for the new dwellings on 33 acres between High Vista Drive and Country Club Road.Town attorney Sharon Alexander told the town council it had limited authority to overrule the Planning Board as long as the board had adhered to the land-use ordinance requirements. "Our purpose is to look at the airplane view, to see if we followed everything we were supposed to follow," Councilman Roger Snyder said, restating the attorney's advice. "So that’s all that we have to decide. We really don’t care whether there’s a lawsuit or a feud or whatever you want to call it." Wayne Carland made the motion, which passed unanimously, to uphold the Planning Board's Oct. 2 decision. "They went through the correct process," he said. "Therefore, I think the council should stand by what they voted for." High Vista Finance and the homeowners who support the new development say the expansion is needed to generate cash to preserve the golf course, an amenity that attracts people to the subdivision and raises home values.Opponents, who are in a dispute with High Vista Finance over covenants that govern land use in the development, urged the Town Council to kill the project. Twenty-seven homeowners signed a letter appealing the Planning Board's decision to authorize the development.The request has split the community, with golfers in support of the expansion.Failure to approve the request, wrote Katherine and Tom Davis, “will likely negatively impact the Highland Vista Golf Course. This course is important to the High Vista community. Having a golf course here benefits the broader Mills River community. … We note that every ad we have seen advertising property got sale in High Vista prominently mentions the golf course here. That is strong evidence that having a golf course here enhances the value of the property, thus enhaving tax revenues for the town.”High Vista Finance proposed a higher density development that was blocked by a vote of the homeowners association. Now the developer has proposed an expansion with as little impact as possible, Nigel Strickland wrote.“Should the golf course fail, I believe it will cause the failure of our clubhouse, tennis courts and swimming pool, all of which are supported by about half the residents,” he said. “The resulting failure will result in a ghost town center in our community, drastically pulling down property values and the attractiveness of living in High Vista.”   Read Story »

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