In the last few months alone, these two exciting new projects have been announced in public power communities…
UNIX Packaging
UNIX Packaging, a California-based contract manufacturer of branded and private label beverages, will invest $19 million to locate its first East Coast manufacturing facility in Morganton. The company, founded in 2010, specializes in turnkey production of functional beverages, flavored water, alkaline and vapor distilled water, carbonated soft drinks, and other specialty beverages such as kombucha for well-known national retailers. The new location will be UNIX’s third state-of-the-art facility, and it will also operate a warehouse for storage of raw materials and finished products. All total, the company will create 226 new jobs in Burke County.
FUSE District
There’s a lot in the pipeline for the FUSE — Franklin Urban Sports and Entertainment — District in the public power community of Gastonia. Recently, the major Gaston County project announced that the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB) will locate an expansion franchise there and that it will be owned by Brandon Bellamy, the CEO of Maryland-based commercial real estate firm Velocity Cos. The team adds momentum to an exciting project rooted in community. The project’s existing plans include developing the brand-new sports stadium and several surrounding parcels of land. The city’s former Trenton Mill site will become loft apartments and the historic Coca-Cola bottling plant residential, retail, restaurant, brewery, and office space. The new baseball team and its owner are another major step toward bringing the whole vision to life. “This is truly a milestone for our city and an example of how public-private partnerships can revitalize a community proven to be beneficial for everyone,” said Gastonia Mayor Walker Reid III.