Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, May 28, 1994 TAG: 9405310177
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: A-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By JAN VERTEFEUILLE STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Rep. Rick Boucher, D-Abingdon, will be the keynote speaker at the ceremony, set for 11:30 a.m. at the site, off U.S. 460 about two miles east of the Dixie Caverns interchange of Interstate 81.
Development of businesses in the park is expected to provide 2,500 jobs and attract more than $100 million in investment, according to Brian Duncan, assistant director of economic development for the county.
The site is where, in 1990 and 1991, Allied-Signal Inc. proposed building a $21 million automobile disc-brake factory.
The county paid $800,000 for most of the 155-acre factory site and gave it to Allied-Signal. It also spent another $600,000 to extend water and sewer lines to the site and about $500,000 to grade the land.
The company canceled its plans after the economic recession and the Persian Gulf War sharply cut demand for new cars. In August 1991, the company returned the site to the county.
The land- in the Glenvar area of the county- then reverted to the Roanoke County Industrial Development Authority. Allied-Signal donated another 20 acres it had purchased
The county is spending $750,000 from a bond issue for improvements. The state provided $510,000 for an engineering grant and road and interstate improvements for the U.S. 11-460 interchange near the site.
The county has been talking to a few companies about building in Valley TechPark, said Anne Marie Green, director of community relations. The economic development department hopes to set aside space for a day-care center and a medical office in the park.
The park also could provide employment and services for New River Valley residents, Green said. Its proximity to Virginia Tech should help attract advanced manufacturing businesses, said Duncan.
The county plans to market the park to diverse manufacturing industries, he said, including plastics and automotive industries.
by CNB