Charles Warner
Editor
It moved to a new location at the end of December, but a local business will soon be back inside the City of Union without having to move an inch.
Union City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to approve first reading of an ordinance annexing the property located at 1027 S. Duncan Bypass into the city’s corporate limits. The ordinance states the property will be annexed into the city with an A-2 Highway Commercial zoning classification. The ordinance further states that the site is adjacent to properties which are already zoned as A-2 Highway Commercial and complies with the regulation requirements for that zone.
Zoning Coordinator Connie Burgess said an area designated A-2 Highway Commercial is defined by the city’s zoning ordinance as being “established to provide for the proper grouping and development of commerical land uses.” She said this includes motels, hotels, convenience stores, grocery stores, automotive repair shops, and most other commercial businesses.
David Sinclair Automotive, LLC
The property is home to David Sinclair Automotive, LLC, which relocated there at the end of December from its old location at 234 S. Gadberry St., Union, due to business growth. The company, which was established in 2009 with a staff consisting of owner David Sinclair and two fellow mechanics, grew by the end of 2011 to a staff of seven including Sinclair and his wife who serves as office manager. As of the end of 2011, the shop was servicing an average of 450 automobiles a month.
As a result, the store outgrew its original location on South Gadberry Street which was closed Dec. 23 and relocated to its current location on Duncan Bypass which opened for business on Jan. 2. In announcing the move in December, Sinclair said the new location gives his business added parking space and greater visibility.
The store provides a wide array of both major and minor automotive repair and maintenance services including transmission repair and overhaul as well as tires and wheels.
In a telephone interview Thursday afternoon, Sinclair said his store has experienced further growth since moving to the Duncan Bypass. He said his staff has grown to eight employees who, in January, serviced approximately 550 automobiles.
David Sinclair Automotive is open 8 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. For more information call 864-424-9374 or go online at www.davidsinclairautomotive.com.
Econonmic Development
The relocation of David Sinclair Automotive was part of the economic development Union County experienced in 2011 including the announcement in March of the location of the ESAB Welding & Cutting Products manufacturing facilityat 256 Midway Drive, Union. ESAB is investing $19.3 million in the 250,000-square-foot facility which will manufacture the company’s line of MIC and Sub Arc welding wire. As of the middle of this month, ESAB has hired 90 of the 101 workers it plans to employ for the current phase of its operations in Union. This phase, however, will only involve 75,000 square feet of the facility and Plant Manager Chris Goumas told the Union Rotary Club earlier this month that ESAB fully intends to eventually make use of the rest of the space.
Also in March, Textile Trends LLC announced it would locate in Jonesville in the old Milliken building at 305 Pacolet St. In announcing its plans, the company stated it would invest $440,000 in the facility which would eventually employ 100 workers in the production of finished line products used in the hospitality industry including napkins, table cloths and aprons. During a ribbon-cutting ceremony in July, company officials said they already had 20 employees, five more than they’d originally planned to have at that point.
In November, Gestamp South Carolina LLC annouced that it would add approximately 150,000 square feet to its existing facility in order to increase capacity. The expansion, which is needed to handle new business, is expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2013. The automotive parts manufacturer will invest $51 million in the expansion which is expected to create 100 new jobs.
Also in November, Dollar General annouced it was adding 50 new positions to its distribution center in Jonesville. At the time of the announcement, the distribution center employed 475 associates. The new positions were in the center’s warehouse.
November brought yet more good news with the annoucement by The Goodwin Group Holdings, LLC, that it would locate its fourth Save a Lot store in the Upstate in Union’s Merchants Walk Shopping Center. The store, which opened Dec. 14, employs a staff of 28.
December brought a series of economic Christmas gifts to Union County beginning with the formal of opening of the Union County Historic Trail which features 23 sites of interest to both local residents and visitors. The trail is already attracting visitors to Union County including a class of seventh grade students from Beaufort Academy College Preparatory School who visited three sites on the trail as part of a school field trip.
Also opening in December was Naruto Japanese Cuisine, a new restaurant located at 708B S. Duncan Bypass, Union, and offering a wide array of Japanese dishes, both dine-in and takeout. Another new business that opened in December was Max Cash Title Loan, located at 219-A N. Duncan Bypass, Union.
Finally, there was the growth driven relocation of David Sinclair Automotive, LLC, which ended 2011 in Union County on a positive economic note.
The new year has brought more good economic development news to Union County with the announcement last week that a company currently known only as “Project Presents” will invest $4.5 million in a facility that will employ 124 people. County and development officials have so far declined to reveal the identity of Project Presents or where it will be beyond saying that an annoucement will be made relatively soon and that the company will locate in an existing facility.
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