Commission Commits to Funding Economic Development, EMS Base and Utility Lines

The Transylvania County Commission backs three projects, two of which will receive significant funding from outside sources, but made no move on long-delayed school renovations.

BREVARD — The Transylvania County Commission overcame its recent reluctance to commit to capital improvement projects on Monday, backing a new $4 million-plus emergency medical services station, a $5.4 million expansion of the Sylvan Valley Industrial Center and $5.5 million worth of utility lines on Rosman Highway.

All these projects have long been in the works and, with the exception of the EMS station, will receive significant funding from outside sources. Still, they require a total contribution of at least $8.5 million in county money.

The Commission also approved $7,500 in tax incentives over four years to help secure the relocation of a machining company, Survival Innovations, from Mills River to Brevard.

The firm, which makes parts for the defense industry, committed to investing $334,000 at its site on Cashiers Valley Road and creating 11 jobs that will pay an average of $41,545 per year, about $2,500 higher than the average wage in the county.

“These are very major items that our citizens can be very proud of and that are going to fundamentally move our community forward,” Commission Chairman Jason Chappell said at the end of the meeting, referring to all four of these moves.

They come as the Commission has faced increased pressure to make other, even bigger spending commitments, including a long-discussed new courthouse and a new Transylvania campus for Blue Ridge Community College.

The Commission is scheduled to hold a workshop to address these larger capital needs later this year.

But it made no move Monday to approve revised deals for the architect and contractor on the biggest project on the horizon, the voter-approved $68-million renovation of Brevard High School and Rosman High and Middle schools.

The Transylvania County School Board approved those amended contracts in January, and Commission action is needed to proceed with the project.

The first phase of the industrial center on Ecusta Road — home of the SylvanSport camper maker — was partly funded by a $1.2 million grant from the Golden Leaf Foundation, which was created with tobacco settlement money in the late 1990s.

The Transylvania Economic Alliance last month announced Golden Leaf had committed another $1.5 million to pay for a 40,000-square foot expansion of the center, which the Alliance will lease for manufacturing.

The Alliance will contribute $150,000 and the county a total of $3.8 million — about $2 million of which will come from accumulated rent paid by SylvanSport and the center’s other tenant, Oskar Blues Brewery. County Manager Jaime Laughter said that the expansion will ultimately generate more such revenue, which can be invested in future economic development projects.

Plans have not yet been created for the expansion and there is no timetable for its completion, said Executive Director Burton Hodges. But once it is built, he expects to have no problem finding a tenant because of Transylvania’s acute shortage of available industrial space.

“Having building inventory is crucial for our success,” he said, “and that really underscores the importance of this project.”

The Commission also committed funding for the new six-bay EMS base on Morris Road, which will replace the old facility near the Ingles supermarket that has long been identified as inadequate and hampered by its location on congested North Broad Street.

Assistant County Manager David McNeill told the Commission that the project will cost between $4.2 to $4.5 million. Laughter said that cost is higher than previously estimated and recommended that the county borrow the money to cover it.

The Commission’s approval, she said, would allow staffers “to start to pull together the information to finance this project and commit payment for, likely, the next 10 years.”

Design of the building will be complete in about three months, McNeill said, and construction about a year after that.

The Commission voted to hire a contractor, Hyatt Pipeline LLC, to complete the utility project, laying water and sewer lines from the town of Rosman to near Island Ford Road.

American Rescue Plan Act funds will cover $3.9 million of the project’s $5.5 million total cost. This will be supplemented by $404,000 from the county and two grants totaling nearly $1.2 million — but not the $2 million grant from Dogwood Health Trust that is also available for infrastructure improvements.

The county decided to instead use more ARPA money for this phase because these funds must be obligated for expenditure by the end of 2024.

“This will assure that the county can spend the funds within the timeline required by (state) and ARPA legislation,” said a document provided to commissioners.

Email: brevardnewsbeat@gmail.com