Manufacturer coming to Greenville

Published 1:52 pm Tuesday, April 15, 2014

A new manufacturer is coming to town and is set to purchase a building previously owned by the City of Greenville.

Terrell Window Fixtures, which will produce shutters, blinds and window shades, will be housed in the former Fortex Manufacturing building, which is located on Thames Street.

The company could be up and running by the end of May, according to president and CEO Al Brannon, provided company officials are able to get the necessary work on the building completed.

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The city was given the building in in December of 2008 by John Norman. It has primarily been used as a storage facility for the last five years.

On Monday, the city council voted to give the building to the Industrial Development Board, which will then sell the building to DATS Investments, LLC, which according to Brannon will then lease the building to Terrell Window Fixtures.

City attorney Richard Hartley said DATS Investments, LLC will make monthly payments to the IDB over a three-year period to purchase the building.

DATS Investments, LLC will purchase the building for $30,000.

Brannon said he hopes that within three years the company will employ 12 people.

“We’re hoping to grow enough to have 12 employees, but like everything else it depends on the economy,” Brannon said. “Sales is driven by the economy and the economy is driven by sales. I believe if we get the orders we’re expecting it’s reasonable that by the end of three years we’ll be up to 12 employees.”

Greenville Mayor Dexter McLendon said the city was happy to be able to assist Terrell Window Fixtures in opening a facility in Greenville.

“We’ve had the building for a while and we’ve been using it to store things, but this was an opportunity to sell the building, get the IDB some money, and also create some jobs, while helping an existing industry to grow,” McLendon said. “This is a good thing. It creates jobs. One day it may get bigger and create 50 jobs, but 12 is 12, and every job counts.”