E-Malt.com News article: USA, NC: Atwater Brewing and city of Wilmington agree on conditions for building new brewery

The city of Wilmington and Atwater Brewing have agreed to conditions that must be met for the Detroit-based brewery to build a plant in Wilmington, Star News Online reported on August 7.

Mayor Bill Saffo and Atwater said in April that the expanding craft brewer was interested in locating a regional facility in the city and that Wilmington would be in competition with other cities.

Atwater owner Mark Rieth indicated in a letter to the city that any agreement is subject to the company getting financing at reasonable terms and the proper zoning.

City spokesman Dylan Lee confirmed the letter to the city from Rieth and emphasized the importance of financing and zoning.

Atwater indicated in the letter, dated May 15, that if conditions were met, it planned to build a 65,000-square-foot full-serice brewery, create a minimum of 30 full-time positions at or above the North Carolina average wage and make a capital investment of at least $5 million.

For Atwater to locate here, the city would have to gain control of a parcel at 900 N. Second St. and combine it with an adjacent property to total more than 84,000 square feet. The city would sell or lease the site to Atwater for fair market value.

The city also would need to install underground infrastructure to support the brewery, and deliver the site ready for vertical construction – graded, utilities stubbed and a public access road built.

Lee said that though the letter is an advancement of efforts to get Atwater, "these are conditions and not agreements for the city and Atwater to do these things.

"If a whole lot of stuff happens, then this can continue to move forward," he said. "Those (conditions) are things that we would like to see happen.

The letter is "in no way a formal commitment," said Patrick Doherty, a broker with Carolina Commercial Investment Properties who handles economic development for Atwater.

"Other cities are bidding for this," he said. "We are taking a very, very hard look at it. We are in negotiations with one larger city now."

"None of this is a done deal," Lee said. "We are very interested in pursuing it and committed to do what is needed to bring them here."

Atwater is expanding in other areas.

In addition to major expansion in Detroit, it is planning to build a production facility in Austin, Texas.

If Atwater picks Wilmington for its mid-Atlantic facility, it would join a burgeoning brewery scene here. In addition to the longstanding craft brewer Front Street Brewery, a number of craft and small-batch operations are in various stages of development or are seeking permission to open.

Wilmington joins the craft beer movement that in North Carolina has been centered on Asheville.

In 2012, three Western breweries announced they were going to expand by adding North Carolina facilities. Two of those are in or near Asheville. California's Sierra Nevada and New Belgium of Colorado are set to open in 2014. Oskar Blues has already opened in Brevard.

According to the Brewers Association, as of 2012 breweries contributed $791 million to North Carolina's economy and created 10,000 jobs in the state.


08 August, 2014