Chamber of Commerce

"Fayetteville had never had significant down- turn during the recession and now a growing, vibrant community is in for massive changes. It's not a blink and overnight it all changes. It's a gradual process." The soldiers, several of whom are gener- als — and their families — are continuing to come. And so are military contractors, distributors and suppliers. Other services, both private and public, such as hotels, res- taurants, entertainment, retail stores and technology will follow. According to Bo Gregory, director of eco- nomic development for the Fayetteville Cham- ber of Commerce, the greater Fayetteville area is on the verge of a dynamic boom. "It's not a sprint, it's a marathon," he said. "It's my firm belief that this place will be suc- cessful and explode. We're just at the point where we are beginning to see big changes." "Fayetteville never had a significant downturn during the reces- sion and now a growing community is in for massive changes. It's not a blink and overnight it all changes, it's a gradual process." Gregory has been scouring the country to bring businesses to the area. He says the groundwork has been laid for an expansion that will bring manufacturing, research and development, food services and many other industrial and commercial companies to Cumberland County. Five major parcels of land are waiting for companies seeking to set up camp in Fayette- ville. Here is a snapshot of each site: • The Cumberland County Shell Building, located at 831 Tom Starling Road has 125,000-square feet of manufacturing/ warehouse space. It sits on 33.8 acres, with about 500 parking spaces and is available for lease or purchase. It is three miles from I-95 and six miles from the Fayetteville airport. • Cedar Creek Business Park is a 485-acre tract of land in southeastern Fayetteville. It is one mile east of the city limits and five miles from the downtown area. Phase I of the park calls for 13 sites, ranging in size from five to 30 acres. Phase II calls for seven sites, ranging from 14.5 to 33.7 acres. But the two tracts 46 | Accents • 2011 - 2012 can also be combined to create a 167-acre site. Combining Phase I and Phase II will provide 347 total acres. About 138 acres has been set-aside as open/natural areas. • The Sand Hills Road site features 153 acres in southwest Fayetteville. It is five miles east of Hope Mills and eight miles from downtown Fayetteville. • Freedom Center, which boasts 50 acres, is located in Spring Lake, 2.5 miles from the U.S. Army's Pope Field, formerly known as Pope Air Force Base. • Military Business Park has 215 acres and is zoned for industrial, commercial and heavy commercial. It is located at the corner of Santa Fe Drive and All- American Expressway (adjacent to Fort Bragg). In addition, a 700,000-square foot mili- tary facility is slated to open in late July. The U.S. military will occupy it. It is lo- cated on Fort Bragg, near exit 49 of I-95. "Right now, if one of the seven clients I recently visited come it will bring dramatic changes for the area," Gregory said. "I talk to each on a daily or weekly basis. I can tell you that very soon we'll be landing a client that will bring changes and jobs not seen since Goodyear came to Fayetteville. It will bring that magnitude of jobs." Fayetteville's economy has been helped tremendously by the military. The U.S. cur- rently has military forces in 130 countries. When BRAC becomes finalized Fort Bragg will have more generals than any city besides Washington, D.C., prompting the new nick- name "Pentagon South." "Generals don't travel much, they make everyone come to them," Gregory said." Gregory is sold on what the greater Fay- etteville area has to offer. "We have parks and dirt with infrastruc- ture and the quality of life here is second to none," he said. "It's a cliché but we have prepared for the opportunities that are coming. And they are real. It's here. It's heating up. Manufacturing and develop- ment opportunities are just the beginning. I jokingly said to someone that Raleigh could be a bedroom community for Fayetteville. This thing is really much greater than the sum of its parts." H The Cumberland County Shell Building on Tom Starling Road.

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