The Fresh Market is expanding in Guilford County and it’s likely to get some help from county taxpayers to do so.
While the Guilford County Board of Commissioners hasn’t discussed the project publically, the board has scheduled a public hearing for its Thursday, Nov. 21 meeting, when the commissioners will listen to any pro and con arguments from citizens and then vote on a proposed incentives package for the upscale grocery store chain.
According to county documents, the proposal is “to appropriate and expend $106,000 in county funds to The Fresh Market, Inc. for the creation of 53 new jobs and retention of 248 positions at an average wage of $86,000.”
The county hasn’t released any other details of the move regarding the upscale grocery store headquartered in Greensboro.
The Guilford County Board of Commissioners almost always approves incentives packages that are on its agenda. The board holds discussions of this type of proposal in closed session, and, if the votes aren’t there to approve, the proposal generally never makes it onto the agenda.
The county is required by law to hold a public hearing before granting any economic incentive package.
The Fresh Market incentives proposal is unusual because the county rarely includes “retention” of jobs as a reason for paying out incentives.
The $86,000 average wage listed for the Fresh Market jobs is also unusually high when compared to a typical package approved by the board.
Gee, I guess they will give Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Super G Mart and Earth Fare a little walk around money as well.
Right! When you give money to any business, you favor that business over all others, especially their competitors.
Just make me King of Guilford County. I’ll put a stop to all this……
86,000 average salary for a grocery store?
Sounds like BS.
Surely a misprint or a typo. Judging from the turnover and quality of the personnel we’ve encountered since the change in ownership it suggests that the County taxpayers are being asked to float a sinking ship by propping up a negative balance sheet. Hopefully, our elected representatives will not ponder this rather blatant money grab for long. Can we vote no?