Newberry County's $8.35 Million Gamble: Building Industrial Sites Before Companies Commit
Newberry County is pouring $8.35 million into industrial infrastructure—roads, water lines, sewer systems, and graded building pads—for companies that haven't agreed to come yet. The investment, spread across three major projects at the Mid-Carolina Commerce Park, will create nine new development sites over the next year, according to WLTX. But the fundamental question facing taxpayers remains unanswered: what happens if the sites stay empty?
The math is stark. Divide $8.35 million by nine sites, and Newberry County is spending roughly $928,000 to prepare each parcel for a tenant that may or may not materialize. "My job is to set the table for council, but we have to be prepared first," Rick Farmer, Newberry County's economic development director, told WLTX. That preparation philosophy—build it and they will come—represents a calculated bet that rural South Carolina can compete for manufacturing jobs against states and counties making similar wagers with their own taxpayer dollars.
The Funding Mechanism: State Grants Create Local Pressure
The $8.35 million total comes from three distinct funding streams, each with its own timeline and requirements. The largest single expenditure is the Mid-Carolina Commerce Park Phase Three Roadway and Pad Project, with an anticipated cost of $4.25 million, as reported by WLTX. This project alone will construct 1,200 linear feet of new roadway and a 300,000-square-foot engineered pad at Site Six, according to the same source. The Phase Three project is expected to go out for bid in spring 2025, per WLTX, meaning the county won't know actual construction costs until contractors submit proposals.
A second major funding source arrived in December 2024, when Newberry County secured $3 million through a South Carolina Department of Commerce Site Enhancement Grant, according to WLTX. The grant was awarded by the South Carolina Rural Infrastructure Authority, which partners with counties to fund speculative development projects, per the same report. This state-level involvement creates a particular dynamic: once a county receives matching grant funds, walking away from the project means forfeiting state money already committed. The grant structure, in other words, incentivizes counties to proceed with speculative infrastructure even when economic conditions shift.
The third component—water and sewer extensions—carries a total budget of $1.1 million, according to WLTX. Construction began in fall 2024 and is scheduled for completion by the end of March 2026, per the same source. The project includes 3,500 linear feet of new 8-inch gravity sewer line running along a creek behind the park, plus 1,200 linear feet of new 12-inch water line, WLTX reported. Most current projects are expected to be completed next month, according to WLTX, though the water and sewer work will continue into early 2026.
What the Money Actually Builds
The infrastructure investments target two distinct areas within the Mid-Carolina Commerce Park. The Mawsons Way Extension will transform an L-shaped road into a U-shaped connection, linking two industrial park entrances, according to WLTX. "One of the most important things that it does is it improves transportation in Newberry County Industrial Park, and this new extension will open up three new sites to economic development, very good sites in an established right beside an interstate, so we are really excited about having access to these new sites," Farmer told WLTX. The interstate proximity is central to the county's pitch—logistics-dependent industries need highway access, and sites without it struggle to attract tenants.
The Phase Three project will provide access to six additional development sites, according to WLTX, bringing the total new parcels to nine. The projects aim to make existing industrial parks more accessible, per the same report, addressing a common barrier in rural economic development: land exists, but without roads, water, and sewer, it's worthless to manufacturers. Infrastructure projects are designed to attract new businesses, WLTX noted, and to prepare land for future industries. The investments include roadways, water and sewer systems, according to the same source—the basic utilities that any industrial tenant requires before breaking ground.
Infrastructure projects are also designed to improve safety, according to WLTX, though the report did not specify what safety improvements the road extensions would provide. The new development sites are located beside an interstate, per WLTX, which Farmer emphasized as a competitive advantage. But interstate-adjacent industrial parks exist throughout South Carolina and neighboring states, raising questions about what distinguishes Newberry's offering beyond the speculative infrastructure investment itself.
Target Industries: Aerospace and Automotive
Farmer has identified specific sectors the county hopes to attract. "We have target industries. For instance, we target aerospace industries, automotive, they have strong capital investments, job opportunities and pay well. We judge each project on merit, and my job is to set the table for council, but we have to be prepared first," he told WLTX. Newberry County targets automotive industries for development, according to the same report, a sector that has driven significant investment in South Carolina over the past two decades.
The aerospace and automotive focus reflects broader trends in Southern economic development, where states compete aggressively for manufacturing plants with tax incentives, workforce training programs, and—crucially—shovel-ready sites. But Farmer's comments to WLTX did not specify what data informed the aerospace and automotive targeting, or whether the county has conducted formal market analysis comparing Newberry's competitive position against other communities pursuing the same industries. The "judge each project on merit" standard suggests case-by-case evaluation, but the criteria for that evaluation remain opaque to taxpayers funding the speculative infrastructure.
The Timeline Problem
Even with construction underway, Newberry County faces a significant lag between spending money and potentially seeing returns. The Phase Three project won't go out for bid until spring 2025, according to WLTX, meaning construction likely won't begin until summer or fall of that year. Water and sewer extensions are scheduled for completion by the end of March 2026, per the same source. Add typical construction timelines for the roadway and pad work, and the nine new sites may not be truly "shovel-ready" until late 2026 or early 2027.
That 18-to-24-month window creates exposure to economic shifts beyond the county's control. Interest rates, supply chain disruptions, changes in federal trade policy, or sector-specific downturns could all affect whether aerospace and automotive companies are expanding when Newberry's sites finally become available. The county is essentially placing a bet today on economic conditions two years from now—a bet funded by taxpayers who have limited visibility into the risk calculus behind the decision.
Funding for projects comes from multiple sources throughout Newberry County and the state, according to WLTX, but the report did not detail what local revenue streams are being tapped beyond the state grant. Newberry County is investing millions of dollars in infrastructure projects, WLTX noted, and millions of dollars are being invested in infrastructure projects in Newberry, Newsbreak separately reported. The redundant coverage underscores the scale of the commitment without clarifying the opportunity cost—what else could $8.35 million fund in a rural South Carolina county?
The Accountability Gap
Farmer's description of his role—"set the table for council"—suggests a technocratic process where economic development staff identify opportunities and elected officials approve them. But the WLTX report did not include comments from county council members explaining how they evaluate the financial projections behind infrastructure investments, or what metrics they use to determine whether a speculative project succeeded or failed. The project is funded by Newberry County and the South Carolina Rural Infrastructure Authority, according to WLTX, but joint funding arrangements can diffuse accountability, making it unclear who bears responsibility if sites remain vacant.
The Site Enhancement Grant was awarded in December 2024, according to WLTX, just two months before this reporting. That recent timeline means the county is still in the early stages of executing its plan, with most current projects expected to be completed next month, per WLTX. But the compressed timeline also means taxpayers have limited opportunity to evaluate whether the investment is working before additional funds are committed. Mid-Carolina Commerce Park water and sewer extensions are underway, WLTX reported, and Mid-Carolina Commerce Park water and sewer extensions began in fall 2024, according to the same source—construction is proceeding regardless of whether any companies have expressed interest in the sites being prepared.
The Competitive Landscape
Newberry County, South Carolina is the location of infrastructure projects, Newsbreak noted, situating the investment within a state that has aggressively pursued manufacturing jobs for decades. South Carolina's success in attracting BMW, Boeing, Volvo, and other major manufacturers has created a template that smaller counties attempt to replicate: prepare sites, offer incentives, and hope to land a transformative project. But that template also means Newberry is competing against dozens of other communities making similar bets with similar infrastructure investments.
The projects aim to prepare land for future industries, according to WLTX—a phrase that captures both the opportunity and the risk. "Future industries" is aspirational language; it describes companies that might come, not companies that have committed. The 300,000-square-foot engineered pad being constructed at Site Six, per WLTX, represents a substantial investment in a specific configuration that may or may not match what a future tenant needs. If an aerospace company requires a 500,000-square-foot pad, or an automotive supplier needs a different site layout, the prepared infrastructure may require additional investment to accommodate actual demand.
What Success Would Look Like
The Mawsons Way Extension will open up three new sites to economic development, according to WLTX, and the Phase Three project will provide access to six development sites, per the same source. If all nine sites attract tenants within a reasonable timeframe—say, five years—the $928,000 per-site investment could generate significant returns in property taxes, job creation, and economic activity. Aerospace and automotive facilities typically employ hundreds of workers at wages above regional averages, which is why Farmer emphasized that target industries "have strong capital investments, job opportunities and pay well," as he told WLTX.
But success is not guaranteed, and the WLTX report did not include projections for how many jobs the county expects to create, what tax revenue the sites might generate, or what timeline would constitute a successful return on investment. Without those benchmarks, taxpayers have no way to evaluate whether the $8.35 million expenditure achieved its goals or fell short. The projects aim to make existing industrial parks more accessible, WLTX reported, but accessibility is a means to an end—the end being actual economic development, which requires companies to choose Newberry over competing locations.
The Broader Pattern
Newberry's infrastructure bet reflects a common pattern in rural economic development: communities invest public funds in speculative projects because they lack the existing infrastructure to compete for private investment. It's a chicken-and-egg problem—companies won't come without infrastructure, but infrastructure without companies is a sunk cost. The county has chosen to absorb that risk, betting that prepared sites will eventually attract tenants who justify the upfront expenditure.
The sewer line runs along a creek behind the park, according to WLTX, a detail that illustrates the physical reality of infrastructure investment. Pipes in the ground, roads through fields, graded pads where trees once stood—these are permanent changes to the landscape, made in anticipation of economic activity that may or may not materialize. If Newberry's bet pays off, the infrastructure will be remembered as visionary preparation. If it doesn't, the county will be left with expensive utilities serving empty lots, and taxpayers will bear the cost of a gamble that didn't work.
For now, construction continues. Most current projects are expected to be completed next month, according to WLTX, with water and sewer extensions scheduled for completion by the end of March 2026. The Phase Three project will go out for bid in spring 2025, per the same source, committing the county to additional expenditures. By the time all nine sites are truly ready for development, Newberry County will have spent $8.35 million preparing for companies that still haven't said yes. Whether that preparation proves prescient or premature won't be clear for years—but the money will already be spent.