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County hears draft economic development strategy, urged to prioritize site readiness and industry targets
Summary
Caswell County staff presented a concise draft economic development strategy that proposes six strategic initiatives — including marketing available industrial sites, preparing Pelham Commerce Park, recruiting small/medium manufacturers and expanding broadband — and asked the board to rank priorities for budget planning.
Caswell County commissioners heard a condensed draft of an economic development strategy from Ken Bowman, who said the plan focuses on six priority initiatives intended to expand the tax base and create jobs. Bowman told the board the document “gets right to the to the meat of what we think we need to be doing here in Caswell County,” and asked commissioners to identify which items to fund in upcoming budgets.
The strategy recommends creating market‑ready industrial and commercial property profiles, positioning the Pelham Commerce Park with improved signage and site readiness, recruiting small and medium manufacturers (including suppliers to data centers), expanding agribusiness and food processing, supporting entrepreneurship and downtown revitalization, and expanding broadband to attract remote workers. Bowman warned several items will require funding and said the draft is a practical, non‑glossy starting point for board direction and staff follow‑up. Commissioners asked follow‑up questions about naming the Pelham site consistently with past plans and suggested adding suppliers for data center projects to the target industry list.
Board members did not take formal action on the strategy; Bowman said staff will accept written comments and meet individually with commissioners to refine priorities before budget planning.
