Developer asks for annexation to build warehouse in Salisbury

Published 7:12 pm Wednesday, February 23, 2022

SALISBURY — The developer behind a major project in Kannapolis says it wants to build a similar facility in Salisbury.

Trammell Crow Company is building a 756,000-square-foot logistics center in Kannapolis called Metro 63. On Tuesday the company talked to Salisbury’s Planning Board about what it hopes will be a similar project in Salisbury.

The new project is called Metro 72. Like the Kannapolis center, it is named for the nearest exit on I-85. The company spoke to the board on Tuesday to request rezoning and annexation of two parcels off Henderson Grove Church Road.

Currently, the parcels are in unincorporated Rowan County, and the request asks to annex the parcels and zone them to the city’s light industrial classification, which would be equivalent to the current zoning in the county.

Trammell Crow Vice President Woody Coley told the board the Kannapolis project is “very similar.”

“I think the main thing I hope you hear from us is we want to hire local, we want to be local, we want to help you create jobs and accomplish some of your goals, manage a clean property and be good neighbors,” Coley said during the meeting.

Greg Welsh, of the firm OAK Engineering, told the board Salisbury is becoming a hotbed for warehouse distribution as Charlotte continues to expand.

Welsh said the target size for the building is about 500,000 square feet. The way streams sit around the site will naturally require “significant” buffers on all sides. The product type will be less intrusive than some industrial uses, he said.

“We try to pay attention to the appearance and not just build a concrete box,” Coley said.

Welsh said he spoke to the North Carolina Department of Transportation about the site. He said the infrastructure in the area will support the proposed project, but it will require a water line extension.

Coley told the board the buildings are designed for one to two tenants. The majority of the space will be set up for the storage of goods and distribution.

Coley said the project will hire local contractors and have a construction manager on site.

More specifics on the project are scarce. Salisbury Development Services Manager Teresa Barringer and the Rowan County Economic Development Commission both directed the post to Chris Kouri, a lawyer with Nexsen Pruet representing Trammell Crow. Kouri did not immediately respond to request for comment.

Coley declined to share more details until the annexation and zoning changes are approved. The planning board unanimously approved the request and it will go before the Salisbury City Council for final approval.

About Carl Blankenship

Carl Blankenship has covered education for the Post since December 2019. Before coming to Salisbury he was a staff writer for The Avery Journal-Times in Newland and graduated from Appalachian State University in 2017, where he was editor of The Appalachian.

email author More by Carl