ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, May 3, 1996 TAG: 9605030065
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: LYNCHBURG
SOURCE: JEFF STURGEON STAFF WRITER
Frito-Lay Inc. on Thursday said it will build a $150 million snack chip factory and warehouse here that will employ 700 to 800 people within 10 years.
Lynchburg officials described the project as the largest factory announced in their city in at least 25 years. It is expected to draw workers and suppliers from the Roanoke Valley.
Taxpayer-funded incentives promised to Frito-Lay are worth more than $12 million, though the plant's long-term impact is forecast to be many times that.
Frito-Lay is the largest snack chip business in the world. The Plano, Texas, unit of food and beverage giant PepsiCo. Inc. of Purchase, N.Y., makes Fritos, Chee-tos, Doritos, Tostitos, Sun Chips, Lay's and Ruffles potato chips and Rold Gold pretzels - among other items. The company said it needs the new plant's added capacity to make more.
The 400,000-square-foot factory is scheduled to turn out its first chips in January 1998. It will improve the economy statewide, said Gov. George Allen. The company estimated that impact will reach $2.5 billion over 10 years as a result of construction costs, payrolls and other factors.
Hiring will begin next summer.
The average hourly wage will be $12.50, said Lee Cobb, Lynchburg's economic development director; however, plant manager Jim Cleary said pay levels haven't been set. The company intends to pay competitive wages, Cleary said, but will first take a survey to see what other employers in the region are paying.
Frito-Lay will hire people who are willing to work in a team as opposed to those with specific skills, Cleary said. "We can teach most people how to make chips," he said.
Frito-Lay spokeswoman Ann Woessner said the company will buy supplies locally when possible, which means Roanoke Valley companies could pick up Frito-Lay as a customer.
The company plans to find growers to raise a special variety of potato which represents the plant's primary raw product. The plant also will need goods ranging from cleaning solution to cooking oil, she said.
In return for Frito-Lay's investment, Lynchburg promised the company local tax breaks worth $3 million to $4 million over 10 years, gave the company 120 acres of land worth $1.2 million, agreed to grade the land at a cost of $1.4 million and pledged to build a $2 million system to pre-treat its sewage, said City Manager Charles Church.
The General Assembly earlier this year approved a $2 million grant to defray start-up costs, which is in addition to $1 million from Allen's Governor's Opportunity Fund, Church said.
Church said the city expects Frito-Lay to pay taxes over 10 years equal to more than twice the city's outlay for the project.
Frito-Lay said it chose Lynchburg because of its attractive business climate and ready infrastructure. Other sites considered were Martinsburg, W.Va., and Chambersburg, Pa. The plant will be in a new industrial park off Lakeside Drive.
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