Fortner appeals to EDC board

By Rose Hooper

"I'm planning to open up a plant; I'll be creating 10 new jobs," Fortner told the Economic Development Commission of Jackson County.

Owner of HMC Paving in Bryson City, Fortner said, "My business is growing every year. Last year, we paid out $50,000 in sales tax alone to buy asphalt."

Fortner's proposal is to build an asphalt plant on 12 acres in the county's Gateway area at the junction of U.S. 441/74. But that proposal has drawn fire from nearby residents and prompted the county to issue a yearlong moratorium on asphalt plants. During the moratorium county commissioners charged the EDC to investigate the economic impact of another asphalt plant in Jackson County. One is currently being operated in Dillsboro by APAC-Harrison Construction.

"I asked to come before the board tonight," Fortner told the EDC Monday, "because it didn't seem to be looking too good for me."

Fortner said he attended the recent EDC meeting in Qualla where most of the residents voiced objections to the plant.

"I wanted to speak at that meeting, but I didn't. I didn't figure it was the right time or place," Fortner said. "And I tried to listen to see if there were any new ideas why people don't want an asphalt plant, but I didn't hear any new reasons."

Fortner said he has visited asphalt plants in the area ­ two in Franklin, one in Dillsboro and one in Waynesville.

"In Wayesville, their recreation department is building a park right next to the plant. In Franklin, the APAC plant is right next to the recreation park. In Dillsboro, Best Western is building right across the river from Harrison," From these visited, Fortner said he concluded being next to those plants "was certainly not a bad thing."

The Rhodes Brothers plant in Franklin is a different matter, he told the EDC. "There you have houses looking right at the plant. But the way I have mine planned in Qualla, there won't be any houses that close."

A resident of Worley Farm Road spoke out at this point and said his home would be within 150 yards from the plant. He and his neighbors strongly objected to the plant's location, he said. But location is crucial, said Fortner, for his business to compete.

"At Gateway I am right in the middle and can feed Bryson, Cherokee and Sylva," he said. "I have access to the main highway; I don't have to go through neighborhoods."

Trucking, he said, is the "most annoying part of my business. If I have to move my location, I may have to run trucks through small neighborhoods." Fortner's alternative is a 55-acre tract of land he owns at Betts Branch off Sunset Farms Road.

Fortner said his new plant would be "the best you can buy. We're going to run a Class A operation."

"Will that include a self-contained unit?" EDC board member Mark Leonard wanted to know. Admitting he was not an engineer, Fortner said he would have his engineer send the specs of his proposed plant to the EDC.

EDC member Ron Stephens, representing Forest Hills, said he would like to see the EDC "move ahead on this and make a decision to give to the commissioners. I think we have studied the issue enough. Let's don't drag our feet, but go ahead and take a vote. I, for one, am ready."

EDC chairman Tom McClure, however, said he was not and that the discovery phase will continue.

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