The recent announcement that Great Dane was building a manufacturing plant in Statesboro was the topic on the “Mornings unPHILtered” show.
    Peggy Chapman, executive director of the Statesboro-Bulloch County Chamber of Commerce and the Bulloch County Development Authority Peggy Chapman, discussed the deal that brought the company to the area.
    Chapman told host Phil Boyum that after working on the project for so long, it was very exciting to see that it's actually going to happen. She said the building of the new facility alone would bring more than $31 million to the county just during the construction phase of the facility inside the Gateway Industrial Park on Hwy 301 South.
    Great Dane is expecting to hold a ground-breaking perhaps as early as next week, and the construction would take approximately one year. Therefore, she said, the plant won't be operating until 2012, but when it opens it will have about 400 employees. Once the plant is finished, the rail connections inside Gateway will ensure that they can receive materials in and ship finished products out.
    Chapman said she was first contacted by the management of Great Dane last October, and asked if the company could visit the Bulloch County community. As the county was already clearing land for a possible Hyundai plant, she took them to that site. Hyundai elected to locate in Alabama, so that left the Gateway site for Great Dane.
    Great Dane, which was established in Savannah, closed its manufacturing plant there in 2008. It will keep its home office in Savannah. Chapman said Bulloch was competing with sites in South Carolina and Florida for the plant.
    By clearing the site in advance, Chapman said the Development Authority was able to show Great Dane administrators exactly how the plant could be built on the Gateway site. Chapman said they had aerial photos taken of the site, which further impressed and excited Great Dane executives. Finally, they put a small concrete pad down to make it look even more ready for construction to begin.
    Chapman said Great Dane officials requested negotiations be kept in confidence until they confirmed they would build here in Bulloch. Chapman said companies don’t want every bank, realtor, and numerous other agencies beating down their doors trying to sell them something, until they make a final decision.
    According to agreed upon contracts, if Great Dane fails to live up to the agreements as per jobs and capitol investment, the company would be required to pay back a tax abatement and the other major costs associated with the project. Chapman said states like South Carolina write companies checks directly to get them to come and establish a business.
   
    “Mornings unPHILtered” airs live Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. on statesboroherald.com and also simulcast on WWNS-AM 1240 on the radio. You also can listen anytime at BoroLive.com on statesboroherald.com