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25 jobs in the agricultural industry
Together all of these projects are anticipated to infuse between $20-
30 million in new payroll to the local economy and effectively equates
to 1 new job created for every 23 residents of Grayson County.
Because the manufacturing sector has the highest backward linkage
or multiplier effect, at $1.44 in output (agriculture has the second highest
at $1.11) the economic impact is expected to be of greater importance
as Hansen Turbine, Core Health and Fitness, and Independence Lumber
are in these sectors.
Tourism is also a growing industry in Grayson County.
“The county speaks for itself—it has a unique ecosystem with the
highest peaks in Virginia,” said Elaine Holeton, the Grayson County
Planning and Community Development Director. “We have two state
parks: New River and Grayson Highlands. We have the New River,
which is a National Scenic River. In many ways the people who come
here come because of the recreational assets.”
Just last March, Grayson County saw unemployment numbers as
high as 10.1%. That number dropped to 8.6% in June, and the county
anticipates that it will continue dropping for the next 18-36 months.
Senator Bill Carrico is hopeful when he thinks of Grayson County.
“As long as we can continue to develop relationships with our
NC. We were entrusted by the company to come
up with a solution to their ongoing operating cost
challenges, and we successfully exceeded their
expectations.”
The company is retaining 57 current jobs and
has announced 25 additional jobs for the area.
Falcon Turbine, a privately owned company
specializing in turbine component coating, made
the decision to both relocate and expand one of
their facilities to Grayson County.
“Falcon Turbine was taking their manufactured
product and shipping it to NC for finishing,”
explained Sweet. “Having established a solid
relationship and respect with Hansen by having
completed another expansion project with the
company back in 2010, it allowed us the foot in the
door to compete for their subsidiary’s relocation
and expansion project from North Carolina to
Virginia.”
Sweet and his team, in concert with the
Virginia Economic Development Partnership andVirginia’s A Corridor
were able to put together a proposal to relocate the expansion of Falcon
Turbine to Grayson County. This created a co-location opportunity
with parent company Hansen Turbine for both their manufacturing and
finishing operations, providing greater stability and reduced overhead
for the company and more jobs for the county.
An employment opportunity in the public sector also materialized
for Grayson County—The River North Correctional Facility.
“In the last twelve months we’ve had 655 qualified new jobs
created and announced in Grayson County,” Sweet explained. “We have
a diversified swath of jobs to include an array of public sector jobs with
the state’s most modern correctional facility, advanced manufacturing
in both the aerospace and strength equipment industries, as well as the
agriculture industry—both manufacturing and agriculture having the
number one and number two highest multiplier ratios. It’s more than
facilitating the creation of new jobs, but it’s the quality of jobs that are
being generated that has the potential to revitalize the local economy
and transform the future of Grayson County.”
A breakdown of these numbers shows the following:
355 public sector jobs have been created
250 advanced manufacturing jobs
25 advanced manufacturing jobs in the aerospace industry
See
Economic Growth in Grayson County
, continued on page 19
Governor Terry McAuliffe cuts the ribbon at the Core Health and Fitness announcement.
The Core Health and Fitness facility still sports the Nautilus emblem.