Enter these keywords: Google + North Carolina. Too many results? Then narrow your search by entering additional keywords. Try these: Jobs + Development + Investment. Maybe then your search would yield “hits” about Google’s recent investment in Lenoir, North Carolina. It represents the single largest investment in the state by a company awarded a Job Development Investment Grant.
According to development authorities in the state, the investment will reinvigorate an area hard hit by the loss of furniture and textile jobs. What’s more, the investment will create knowledge-based jobs, as coveted as they are high paying.
Google, famous for its Internet search engine, plans to invest up to $600 million to build a data center in Lenoir to support the company’s online operations. The move will create as many as 210 jobs during the next four years. Wages at the facility will vary by job function, but the average wage is expected to be more than $48,300 not including benefits, which is substantially more than the county average of $27,300 without benefits.
“The data center we’re planning to build in Lenoir, North Carolina will help support continued growth in our online services,” said Lloyd Taylor, director of global operations, Google, Inc. “We look forward to joining the local community and are grateful for the support from the state and local governments throughout our evaluation process.”
For each year that the company meets the required performance targets, the state will provide a grant equal to 75 percent of the state personal income withholding taxes derived from the creation of new jobs. If the company creates all of the jobs called for under the agreement and sustains them for 12 years, Google could receive a maximum benefit of $4.8 million.
During the life of the grant, state authorities estimate that the project will generate a cumulative gross state product value of approximately $1.06 billion. In addition, it will produce a positive, cumulative net state revenue impact of $37.145 million.