Press Releases

The comment period has been extended for local communities to recommend areas for new federal legislation that could bring investment to economic development where it is most needed. These areas will be designated as North Carolina Opportunity Zones, and communities can submit comments and recommendations to the North Carolina Department of Commerce until Tuesday, March 27.  This new tool for community and economic development is designed to provide tax incentives to qualified investors when they reinvest unrealized capital gains into low-income communities.

Expansion in Buncombe and Ashe Counties Brings an Investment of More than $100 Million

North Carolina communities will gather in Clayton on March 13–15 for the Department of Commerce’s annual NC Main Street conference, coordinated by the NC Main Street & Rural Planning Center. The three-day conference theme - Think Change: Think Main Street, is an exploration of ways that North Carolina communities are effectively changing their local economy. The conference is open to anyone interested in downtown revitalization and economic development strategies.

RALEIGH: Ernst & Young LLP (EY), one of the largest professional services organizations in the world, will expand in Mecklenburg County creating 375 jobs and investing $8.2 million in Charlotte over the next five years, Governor Roy Cooper announced today.  The expansion includes development of an EY wavespace™ innovation center. The center will be part of the EY wavespace global network of growth and innovation centers bringing together multi-disciplinary teams to focus on disruptive growth, improvement strategies and technologies.

: A new program aimed at improving worker health in the automotive, aviation and manufacturing sectors in Western North Carolina launched today, Governor Roy Cooper announced. Communities can apply for more than $1.6 million to support local efforts to enhance health care for these critical employees. 

Innovative sushi rice producer RiceWrap Foods to scale up operations with $9.9 million investment in Butner

The North Carolina Rural Infrastructure Authority (RIA) approved 16 grant requests totaling $3,948,755, N.C. Commerce Secretary Anthony M. Copeland announced today. The requests include commitments to create a total of 683 jobs, 461 of which were previously announced. The public investment in these projects will attract more than $142.8 million in private investment. 

TEAM Industries Andrews, Inc., an engineering-driven design and manufacturing company, will add 20 jobs and invest $3 million at its facility in Andrews, Governor Roy Cooper announced today.  With the help of this grant, the company will renovate the facility it has occupied for the past 13 years. 

Quality Enclosures, Inc., a manufacturer of shower enclosures and tempered glass will create 65 full-time jobs over four years at a new facility in Stanly County, Governor Roy Cooper announced today.  The company will invest nearly $3.3 million to upfit a vacant building in Albemarle and open a high-tech tempering operation, shower door distribution center and national training center. 

State outdoor recreation directors from across the country will gather in Asheville this July to continue building a multi-state vision for connecting Americans with the outdoors, Secretary of the N.C. Department of Commerce Anthony M. Copeland announced today. The Asheville Confluence Summit builds on a meeting in Denver this past January, where outdoor industry leaders from eight states gathered for the first time before the annual Outdoor Retailer + Snow Show to discuss shared public policy principles and identify ways their states could work together.