Slash Lane“North Carolina continues to be a prime location for growing and expanding global technology companies," said Governor Beverly Perdue. "We welcome Apple to North Carolina and look forward to working with the company as it begins providing a significant economic boost to local communities and the state."
Senate Bill 575 was structured to give a single company — identified last month as Apple — a tax break of up to $46 million over the next 10 years, assuming that company reaches its $1 billion investment target within nine years of beginning the project, provides health insurance for its local employees, meets a wage standard, and foregoes other state grants or tax breaks.
Should Apple's server farm remain active for three decades, corporate tax breaks could exceed $300 million, according to estimates outlined by North Carolina's legislature. At least 50 full-time employees will staff the facility. Over time, the investment of $1 billion would create more than 3,000 jobs in the local area, as estimated by the North Carolina Department of Commerce. This type of facility would require local services, such as building and HVAC maintenance, landscaping, and other services, leading to an expansion of the local economy.
Though the exact location of the planned server farm has not yet been announced, the legislation dictates that it must be located in a Tier 1 or Tier 2 economically-distressed area. Apple has reportedly been considering two sites in western North Carolina to house the server farm, which is expected to support the staggering growth of its iTunes and App Store digital download services: Catawba and Cleveland counties, both of which have unemployment rates north of 15 percent.
Catawba County officials have reportedly been touting several sites off Route 321 for their fiber and power infrastructure in an effort to market those locations as viable data center lots. One site is a 183-acre tract in Maiden known as Catawba Data Park, which may suit Apple’s reported desire for a multi-facility campus setting.
“During these tough economic times, it’s important to make the investments that create jobs in areas that need them the most,†said Governor Perdue.
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20 Comments
Very nice for NC. And especially in this eocnomy.
ok doesn't anybody watch the movies?? At first seems like good idea for putting computers all together. But eventually the robots get "powerhungry" and start making other angry robots. Then its a struggle, MAN VERSUS MACHINES!! robots will not stop until we are all just working for them, giving them oil like that one in wizard of oz (he seemed an ok guy but secretly wanted ultimate power)On the other hand, if we are to be slaves to a race of robot overlords, I hope they will be based on Snow Leopard and include features like OpenCL and Grand Central.
ok doesn't anybody watch the movies?? At first seems like good idea for putting computers all together. But eventually the robots get "powerhungry" and start making other angry robots. Then its a struggle, MAN VERSUS MACHINES!! robots will not stop until we are all just working for them, giving them oil like that one in wizard of oz (he seemed an ok guy but secretly wanted ultimate power)On the other hand, if we are to be slaves to a race of robot overlords, I hope they will be based on Snow Leopard and include features like OpenCL and Grand Central.
the software on the site (the software!) just demanded my post be at least five characters. that's ironic in context, no???
Very nice for NC. And especially in this eocnomy.
Most definitely. I just hope that out-of-state/county businesses aren't going to trump the local businesses who will benefit from this.
Most definitely. I just hope that out-of-state/county businesses aren't going to trump the local businesses who will benefit from this.
That's kind of the drawback for this kind of incentive. These incentives help the companies big enough to make a significant impact, but leave out the numerous smaller ones whose combined economic impact may well add up to several times that of Google.