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A summary of significant recent developments in these industries follows.
<br />Manufacturing. The principal products manufactured in the County now include optical fiber,
<br />textiles, food, printing and publishing, concrete products, lumber and wood, specialized coloring,
<br />fabricated metal and machinery products, mobile and modular home components, custom trailers and
<br />corrugated packaging.
<br />Other manufacturing facilities produce a wide variety of goods for national and international
<br />distribution. The following are just a few examples of these industries. Corning, Inc.'s fiber optics facility
<br />in Midland, which had been "mothballed," has reopened and officials expect the facility to increase
<br />capacity as the fiber optic market improves globally. S &D Coffee is a major roaster and distributor of
<br />coffee products for institutional and restaurant use and is headquartered in Concord. GGT, a fabricator of
<br />custom trailers, is located off of 1 -85 near exit 55.
<br />Philip Morris USA, which was the largest manufacturer in the County, closed its Concord facility
<br />at the end of July 2009. The facility encompasses over 2,100 acres and 1.2 million square feet. Philip
<br />Morris has hired Jones Lang LaSalle to market the property. The County, the City of Concord and the
<br />Cabarrus Economic Development Corporation are partnering with Philip Morris USA and Jones Lang
<br />LaSalle to promote the site as a job creation center.
<br />Warehousing and Distribution. The distribution, warehousing, and shipping industry is another
<br />growing sector of the County's economy, as the County continues to be a cost - effective alternative for
<br />Charlotte area distributors. This industry benefits from the County's proximity to the City of Charlotte (a
<br />regional trucking and manufacturing center with a major commercial international airport) and from access
<br />to 1 -85, which has seven existing interchanges in the County. One of the newest interchanges on 1 -485,
<br />known as the Charlotte "Outer belt," 1 -485, opened in 2004 and provided almost direct access to the
<br />County in a number of areas. Construction is scheduled to begin on the remaining northeast section of 1-
<br />485 in 2011, further increasing accessibility to the County. In addition, 1 -77 intersects with 1 -85 and three
<br />other major highways within 15 miles of the County. Examples of companies building or expanding
<br />distribution centers in the County include: Saddle Creek, a large Florida logistics company, which opened
<br />a 350,000 square foot rail -served distribution center in Harrisburg (from which it serves Wal -Mart,
<br />America's largest retailer) and has recently completed an expansion that more than doubled the size of its
<br />Harrisburg facility; and Caffey Distributing, a Greensboro -based beer distributor, which in 2002 began
<br />operating a 130,000 square foot distribution center near 1 -85 and the Concord Regional Airport.
<br />Childress Klein, a leading developer of warehouse and distribution properties, is developing 275
<br />acres of vacant land in Kannapolis. This property is located at the interchange of 1 -85 and the Kannapolis
<br />Parkway and includes a new complex with 2.5 million square feet of flex office, warehouse and
<br />distribution space. The development plans also include 400,000 square feet of retail use, called Afton
<br />Ridge, much of which is already open. The overall investment is expected to reach $140 million and
<br />create 2,800 jobs over the next decade.
<br />Research. Castle & Cooke has redeveloped the former Pillowtex properties in Kannapolis as a
<br />major mixed use development with the centerpiece of the development constituting the North Carolina
<br />Research Campus (the "Research Campus'). This is a multi - purpose campus that houses state -of- the -art
<br />research equipment, research space and laboratory space. The Research Campus was intended to be,
<br />and is a collaboration between public and private sectors. Public sector partners already located on
<br />campus include Appalachian State University, North Carolina A &T University, North Carolina Central
<br />University, North Carolina State University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the University
<br />of North Carolina at Charlotte, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and Rowan - Cabarrus
<br />Community College. Duke University plans to construct a new facility on campus and is managing the
<br />M.U.R.D.O.C.K. Study, a large -scale project to study the long -term health of County citizens. Private
<br />sector partners include Angiogen, Anatomics, Bio- Marker group, Dole Nutrition Institute, General Mills,
<br />Monsanto, Red Hat, Sensory and Spectrum.
<br />To facilitate the development and finance public improvements needed, the City of Kannapolis
<br />has created the North Carolina Research Campus Financing District (the "Development District'),
<br />pursuant to the State's project development financing act authorized in 2005. This district is comprised of
<br />approximately 863 acres within the County and Rowan County. The Development District was created to
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