Burke releases conceptual design for industrial shell building

Burke County’s speculative industrial shell building project at the Burke Business Park is only a couple of weeks away from being a biddable construction project, County Manager Brian Epley said.

Monday at the board’s regular monthly meeting, Epley unveiled a conceptual design for the shell building at the park, located just off Exit 96 on Interstate 40 in western Burke County, as part of his presentation on the county’s 2025-26 fiscal year budget.

“We’re pushing that project just as hard and as quickly as we can,” Epley said.

The county asked the General Assembly last November if it could use $20 million of the $36 million allocated by the state for the Great Meadows Industrial project, known locally as the megasite.

The plan was to divert funding from the long-range Great Meadows site into a project that would provide a much quicker turnaround. Burke officials have repeatedly said they believe the speculative building will sell quickly.

Legislators approved the request, which was part of the sweeping omnibus bill HB 382. The county has three years to build and sell the new facility and place the money back in the Great Meadows fund, although there would be no punitive measures from the state if that doesn’t happen.

Epley told the board of commissioners that all the pre-regulatory bidding requirements are finished during the board’s pre-agenda meeting June 2.

Stormwater and civil engineering are “substantially complete,” Epley said. The engineering firm of McGill and Associates did the work.

Epley said the bidding process would take 30-45 days and anticipates the contracting phase will begin in August.