By Betsy Finklea
Dillon County has been awarded $500,000 to help with the construction of a spec building at the I-95 Gateway Park.
The award came from the S.C. Coordinating Council for Economic Development.
County Administrator Clay Young said the county is happy to receive the grant. “I think it was a good move for all three counties to work together on this project. This will make us more competitive for economic development projects and having a spec building will help us to attract industry,” said Young.
According to the application, the spec building will be 50,000 square feet expandable to 100,000 square feet using approximately 16.5 acres of the site.
The application states that the hope is that the spec building “will help attract industry to our area thus lowering our unemployment rates and providing more job opportunities for our citizens. Available certified sites and speculative buildings are essential to bringing industry to our area.” Dillon, Marion, and Marlboro Counties have committed 60 percent (approximately $1.3 million) to the total project cost, which is estimated at $2.5 million. $200,000 in Gateway Industrial Park corporation funding had also been dedicated to the project. “Dillon County has also committed an additional $605,000 on the Farley Drive extension project to complement the 50,000 square foot spec building,” the application states.