Overview:
• The company chose Fayetteville over locations in Virginia and South Carolina.
• Fayetteville and Cumberland County last year approved $691,000 in grants for the project. North Carolina is offering another $125,000.
• SteelFab’s customers include the newly built medical school in Fayetteville.
SteelFab Inc., a national steel company that was founded in North Carolina, is moving forward with its plan to add 42 positions with a $22 million expansion of its plant on the north side of Fayetteville, officials announced on Wednesday.
Added to its existing positions, this will bring SteelFab’s total Fayetteville employment to approximately 125 to 130 people. The estimated salary for the 42 new jobs is nearly $70,000, the Fayetteville Cumberland Economic Development Corp. (FCEDC) said. The expansion will encompass 129,000 square feet.
“We are excited to continue our tradition as an NC-founded, privately owned steel manufacturer supplying projects across the State and the East Coast,” Rob Burlington, SteelFab’s region president, said in a statement.
SteelFab has operations in 13 states and supplies structural steel for commercial and industrial construction projects, the FCEDC said. The company has contributed to several projects in the region, including the Methodist University Cape Fear Valley Health School of Medicine. The medical school opened in June.
The expansion follows a controversial request to rezone the property from light industrial and conservation district use to heavy industrial use. Nearby residents initially opposed SteelFab’s request during a hearing with the Fayetteville Zoning Commission on July 14.
In light of the neighbors’ concerns, SteelFab reduced its rezoning request from 123 acres to 61 acres, leaving the remaining land as conservation district, according to city records. The Fayetteville City Council unanimously approved the rezoning on August 24.
SteelFab’s Fayetteville plant is on Country Club Drive at Distribution Drive, near Murchison Road. It was the home of the locally owned Hercules Steel before it was sold to SteelFab’s Virginia division in 2021, according to county property records. The expansion will be on Distribution Drive, city documents show.
Last year, SteelFab was deciding between Fayetteville and locations in Virginia and South Carolina for the expansion, CityView previously reported. It was code-named “Project Superman.”
The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners and the Fayetteville City Council voted last year to offer grants totaling $690,987 to persuade SteelFab to pick Fayetteville. The grants are to be paid over five years.
To sweeten the deal, the state is providing a $125,000 grant from its OneNC Fund, which provides financial assistance to local governments to help attract economic investment.
This isn’t SteelFab’s only expansion. It has a $38.9 million project underway to add 108 jobs at its facility in Florence County, South Carolina, the Florence Morning News reported in July.
North Carolina officials praised SteelFab’s Fayetteville expansion.
“North Carolina is a place where businesses like SteelFab can grow,” Gov. Josh Stein said when he announced the OneNC grant. “Cumberland County is home to a world-class workforce, legacy of manufacturing excellence, and convenient East Coast location. We’re grateful that SteelFab is doubling down on Cumberland.”
“This investment brings 42 well-paying jobs and $22 million in capital investment into the Murchison Road Corridor, a community I grew up in and have fought for as Mayor,” said Fayetteville Mayor Mitch Colvin.
“This project strengthens our growing manufacturing sector and creates high-quality jobs while reinforcing our commitment to workforce development,” said Cumberland County Commissioners Chair Kirk deViere.
Senior reporter Paul Woolverton can be reached at pwoolverton@cityviewnc.com.
