Floyd County EDA receives $2.3M federal grant for growth center
The Floyd County Economic Development Authority announced this week it has received a $2.3 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration to construct the first building for the Floyd Growth Center, a shared space in the Floyd Regional Commerce Center for small industrial companies.
Different from a small business incubator, the center will allow businesses to stay as long as they want, said Floyd County Community and Economic Development Director Lydeana Martin. The county estimates that two businesses will be able to operate in the center at a given time, unless building plans change or the space is further divided, she added.
Building 1 will be a 13,000-square-foot industrial building with two main spaces. One space will be approximately 4,300 square feet, and the other approximately 8,700 square feet. Both spaces will have a production area, a drive-in door and office space.
“When we applied for this last August, our goal was to develop affordable spaces for premium production or fabrication work, where local businesses could grow into and other businesses could consider space in Floyd,” Floyd EDA Chairman Jon Beegle said in a statement.
Construction for Building 1, which is expected to cost $2.88 million, is expected to begin by spring 2021.
The project is being funded through the Additional Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief Act of 2019, which gave the EDA $600 million for disaster relief and recovery related to Hurricane Florence, which hit the county hard in 2018. The Floyd Growth Center construction will also receiving $302,000 in funding from the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission.
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