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Gaston County approves three economic-incentive agreements covering expansions and a prospective site
Summary
The Gaston County Board of Commissioners approved three incentive grants — Project Family, Project East Coast and Project Delory — to support expansions or prospective investments that together propose hundreds of jobs and multimillion-dollar investments.
The Gaston County Board of Commissioners on Aug. 26 approved three economic-development incentive agreements: a county “level 1” grant for an existing local company (Project Family), a level 4 grant for an expansion (Project East Coast), and a level 4 incentive authorized under North Carolina General Statute 158‑7‑1 for a prospective site labeled Project Delory.
Donnie Hicks, executive director of the Gaston County Economic Development Commission, said Project Family is an existing county company planning a $4.5 million expansion that would create about 30 jobs with an average wage above $52,000 — the county average. The county intends to ask the corresponding municipality to match the county grant.
Project East Coast is an expansion with an estimated investment of about $116 million; Hicks said the county will seek a municipal match in September. Project Delory is a site-solicited prospect: Hicks said the proposal contemplates an initial investment of approximately $67 million and total projected job creation of about 513 jobs over five years, with average annual wages at or above the county average. Hicks noted Project Delory is likely multi‑phase and that the county’s action was anticipatory to provide competitive clarity for the prospective company.
A member of the public asked what type of businesses these projects represent. Chairman Chad Brown said project identities are subject to state confidentiality rules while commerce‑department review is ongoing, and that staff will provide details as allowed. “This right here is preliminary… a lot of that will be taken into consideration,” Brown said.
Each incentive was moved and approved by the full board with unanimous votes following the public hearings. Hicks said the county will request municipal matches and present the agreements to the corresponding municipalities in early September.
