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Greene County approves Terracon for due-diligence work on 630‑acre Burnett Road site
Summary
The Greene County commissioners approved a two‑year on‑call agreement with Terracon to perform a 10‑item due‑diligence scope on a 630‑acre site on Burnett Road after a competitive RFQ process and staff interviews.
Greene County commissioners on Tuesday approved Terracon Engineering Services to perform due‑diligence engineering on the county’s 630‑acre Burnett Road property under a two‑year on‑call contract.
County staff told commissioners the county issued a request for qualifications that drew 14 responses from firms ranging from Charlotte to Wilmington and used a three‑person panel not affiliated with the county manager’s office or the economic development office to score the submissions. After shortlisting two firms and interviewing them, staff recommended Terracon as the top choice.
The recommendation, described in the meeting by a county staff member, said Terracon has a local project manager identified only as “Carl *****” who lives in Farbel and has previously worked on Greene County projects. The staff member said the county received a $150,000 appropriation from the state general assembly for work on the site and requested the two‑year term to allow time to use that appropriation and pursue additional grants, including hoped‑for Golden LEAF funding.
Commissioners asked about the length of the contract and the scope of work. The county staff member said the firm will be asked to complete 10 due‑diligence tasks, including a Phase I environmental assessment, historic review, geotechnical studies and wetland delineation, among others. The staff member said the county selected an option structure for the property to avoid county expenditures if the site proved unsuitable for development.
A motion to approve Terracon and authorize the county manager to execute necessary contracts passed on a voice vote.
The county did not specify the contract dollar amount in the public discussion. The staff presentation noted the RFQ packages ranged from about 30 to 60 pages and that two firms were interviewed by Zoom before the selection. No formal vote tally by name was recorded in the meeting minutes or transcript.
Next steps discussed by staff include issuing task orders for the specified due‑diligence items and completing the historical review early in the process to determine whether archaeological or other finds might constrain development. The county staff member said the option approach preserves county taxpayer funds until the due diligence is completed and project feasibility is established.
Background: the Burnett Road site has been the subject of county economic development work; staff characterized the current action as due diligence to assess the property’s suitability for industrial development and to support future procurement or grant applications.
