Holly Springs leaders eye land for new business park

Holly Springs town leaders say they want to create another business park on 130 acres of undeveloped land near Friendship Road and U.S. Highway 1.

Posted 9:20 p.m. Dec 26, 2008 — Updated 9:11 p.m. Mar 9, 2009

HOLLY SPRINGS, N.C. — Holly Springs town leaders say they want to create another business park on 130 acres of undeveloped land near Friendship Road and U.S. Highway 1.

The town has already started showing the site to investors and marketing it as Friendship Park with brochures that tout it as "shovel-ready and certified."

"Economic development is not really something that happens overnight. You really have to plan for it, and that's what we're trying to do here with the Friendship," said Holly Springs Town Manager Carl Dean.

The town did the same seven years ago with Holly Springs Business Park. Its actions helped draw in pharmaceutical giant Novartis, which is creating 450 jobs and investing $600 million in the town.

Dean said the town can do it again.

"The economy is down right now, but we feel very confident that it will pick up, and when it picks up, Holly Springs will be ready to go," he said.

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