Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

GATESVILLE – Plans continue to develop for the Merchants Commerce Center.

At their regularly scheduled meeting here April 16, the Gates County Board of Commissioners received an update on the Commerce Center, a 144-acre site across from Gates County High School purchased by the county in 2022 in an effort to attract new businesses, particularly those offering goods/services that are now only available outside the county.

Commissioner Nathan Berryman said he and Gates County Planning and Development Director Lisa Cherry were working closely with Summit Design & Engineering on plans to develop the property.

Berryman said the next phase of a feasibility study is looking at bringing in some type of alternative grocery store as well as designating a multi-use “flex space” on the property that can be used for entertainment and could be rented out for events.

“There’s a lot of folks that go outside the county to rent such space for events; I’d like to see us keep those dollars in Gates County,” Berryman said.

Berryman said he and Cherry were in agreement for a study to be used to judge the feasibility of developing the space and the cost.

Berryman also mentioned a feasibility study for an alternative grocery store.

“We need to look to see if it will work in this county and if it will be self-sustainable,” Berryman stated. “We don’t want to go down this road and it fail within one year. We want it to stay for a long, long time and be a benefit to our residents.”

The study would include research on demographics, assets, and liabilities, geographic inventory and mapping of existing stores, farms and other assets, research precedent models, virtual interviews of stakeholders and successful precedent stakeholders, and research on potential funding sources.

Berryman motioned to approve the proposal of the two studies by Summit Engineering at a total cost of $46,763.

Forsythe offered a second to the motion.

The money would come from the county’s General Fund balance.

Board chair Emily Truman recalled in previous discussions it was noted that the county’s only option as far as attracting a grocery store/supermarket is an alternative model.

“We’re not going to have one of the big chain stores [come here],” Truman stressed. “We’re too small; we’re too rural. We would have to double in size for that to happen.”

Berryman said there was an alternative type grocery store in operation in Surry County (Virginia) and he planned to reach out to officials there to see how they navigated the process to attract such a store to their county.

“We can get some ideas of how someone has already started walking that path before we start walking it,” Berryman stated.

Forsythe suggested looking at other engineering firms to gauge their interest and their costs of assisting Gates County in such feasibility studies.

“There’s good value in diversity. Nothing against Summit, but they have already had a couple of stabs at the apple and should we consider offering a chance to another firm for them to have a fresh look at it,” Forsythe said.

“We could look into something like that, but I would also say that having a relationship with a firm goes a long way,” Berryman stressed. “They (Summit) have an understanding of what our real needs are and we won’t have to bring in somebody new and waste time getting them up to speed. Time is money.”

Addressing the flex space, Commissioner Brian Rountree suggested the county gain input of its citizens since this was a new proposal.

“I like the proposal, but input from our citizens is critical,” Rountree stated.

Berryman said Summit will send out a survey, asking the citizens for their opinions about the flex space idea.

The vote was 5-0 in favor of approving the funding for the two studies.