1. County Profile: Chatham County
By JOAN PLOTNICK
Business Leader-Triangle, August 2007
Chatham County is experiencing a residential boom. Drawn by the sheer beauty of its three
rivers — the Haw, Rocky and Deep — as well as Jordan Lake, abundant hiking trails, birding
opportunities, and quaint towns, its population has grown 21 percent between 1990 and 2000,
and 12,000 new residential lots or homes were approved over the past four years.
Yet in-county employment has not followed suit. Only 65 new jobs were created in 2005, and 55
percent of the population commutes to work in nearby Triangle and Triad communities.
The county now is set to change that. “There’s a growing consensus among the elected board of
the town and county, and I believe among the citizens, that we need to focus on economic
development,” says Dianne Reid, president of the Chatham County Economic Development
Corp. “There is a lot of residential development approved and in the pipeline, and we have to
balance the residential development with economic development.”
In June, the county imposed a one-year moratorium on residential subdivisions of more than 25
lots or units in all areas outside of Pittsboro, Siler City and Cary, which have their own land-use
jurisdictions. Reid says this will give the county breathing room as it completes its updated
strategic plan.
A Plan of Attack
According to Reid, balancing residential and economic development is important for a number of
reasons. For one, residences use more services than commercial users.
“Numerous studies have found that on the whole, residential development does not pay for itself,
whereas commercial development generates $4 to $5 for every $1 in services used,” she notes.
The Research Triangle Region as a whole is in non-attainment status with the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for poor air quality. The large amount of workplace
commuting exacerbates that.
There is a mismatch between the skills residents have and the jobs available in the county as
well. This has resulted in a high median household income — eighth in the state — and per-
capita personal income — third in the state — but lower-than-average in-county wages — 37th
in the state. People tend to shop where they work as well.
A recent Strength Weakness Opportunities Threats (SWOT) analysis commissioned by the
University of North Carolina Center for Competitive Economics found that 64 cents of every
dollar spent by Chatham County residents is spent outside the county, resulting in about $7.7
million in lost local sales-tax revenue.

2. A Rural Feel
Fortunately, Chatham County has a lot to offer new or expanding industries. It is about 1.66
times larger than Orange County but has half the population, leaving it with an unsurpassed rural
feel.
“Beauty is one of our major attractions,” says Larry Hicks, commissioner. “I think our rural
heritage and character is one of our greatest strengths.” The county also is situated near the
Triangle and Triad markets, with easy access to both via U.S. Highway 64, N.C. Highway 421
and U.S. Highway 15/501 — a fact emphasized by its slogan, “Heart of North Carolina.”
It has more vacant and affordable land than the more urban communities in the Triangle and
Triad area as well. “I came from Orange County, where I worked for eight years,” Reid says.
“A tremendous issue there is no vacant property. We do have that infrastructure here. We have
industrial buildings ready to go.” Almost 80 percent of county residents have a high-school
diploma, and almost 30 percent have bachelor’s degrees or higher. “If the opportunity presents
itself, the workforce already exists,” Hicks notes.
Niche Industries
Chatham’s combination of rural heritage and educated populace has fostered two niche industries
— sustainable agriculture and the arts. Central Carolina Community College (CCCC) offers the
only two-year associate’s degree program in sustainable agriculture in the state. “Chatham
County is ahead of the curve in terms of sustainable agriculture,” Reid says.
“People come to the community-college program from all over the state to learn about
sustainable agriculture techniques.” CCCC recently launched a biofuels education training
program, which it is in the process of expanding into an associate’s degree program.
The college also recently has begun a training program in green building technology through its
continuing-education division, which also is likely to become an associate’s program in the
future.
“We are very community-based in our programming. We exist to serve the needs and interests of
our constituents,” says Karen Allen, provost for the county for CCCC. “Ten years ago, there was
an increasing interest in sustainable agriculture, and our program is a response to that. The same
is happening now in biofuels.”
Currently, Chatham County houses the only biodiesel plant in the state, as well as the
headquarters of the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association, and branches of the American
Livestock Breeds Conservancy and Rural Advancement Foundation International. It also plays
host to the state’s only cooperative extension agent specializing in sustainable agriculture.
With the county’s emphasis on the arts, CCCC has created professional arts and crafts and
sculpture programs in Siler City. It also is actively involved with N.C. Arts, an incubator there.

3. Ray Epley, industrial relations officer for the college, says more traditional industries have
benefited from its programs as well. “There are very few industries in this area that we haven’t
helped in one way or another,” he notes. “If it is a small industry, it’s even likely that people who
graduated from the college work there.”
Active Citizenry
Hicks describes the county’s citizens as “exceptionally active,” ready to lend a hand to promote
economic development. There were between 30 and 100 people who attended each SWOT
meeting, an impressive amount for such a rural county.
“The county has volunteer groups of all kinds,” Hicks says. “There is lots of depth in our
volunteerism, not just activism around growth and economic development, but health, schools
and Habitat for Humanity. There’s a wide variety of volunteer efforts.”
One company that already has experienced the benefits of Chatham County is Biolex
Therapeutics, which recently was named a Business Champion by Wake Technical Community
College and Business Leader. Biolex, which develops difficult-to-make proteins, opened in
Pittsboro about six years ago with a handful of employees, and currently has 105 workers.
Ron Newcomb, senior director of project management, credits the company’s success to the
county’s location, as well as CCCC, the availability of a highly skilled workforce and an
“extremely cooperative and supportive local government.” Quality of life doesn’t hurt, either. “I
took the job at Biolex and just fell in love with this town, with this area,” Newcomb says. “So I
decided to sell my house in Cary and move here.”