American Tobacco Project Announces Newest Tenant

Friday, pharmaceutical giant

GlaxoSmithKline

announced it will move more than 400 employees into the heart of downtown Durham.

Duke University

and

Compuware

, a software company owned by Carolina Hurricanes owner Peter Karmanos, are already slated to move into the former tobacco warehouses.

The companies will be a part of the largest revitalization project in Durham's history.

"Isn't it ironic that we're on a historic tobacco site, which was the industry of the past in North Carolina. Whereas, as we look forward, it's going to be high technology companies, like GlaxoSmithKline, like Compuware affiliated with one of the word's leading universities, Duke, that we'll be creating jobs and improving life in downtown Durham?" said Bob Ingram of GlaxoSmithKline.

The developer, WRAL's parent company, Capitol Broadcasting, plans to fill the buildings with offices, shops restaurants and perhaps even a hotel.

The project is expected to bring more than 3,000 jobs to the area.

Construction on the buildings is scheduled to start in a month. The first phase could open in mid-2004