Tarheel Missile Plant

Western Electric - Tarheel Missile Plant
204 North Graham Hopedale Road - Burlington, NC
Rare & Unique Redevelopment Opportunity
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“As long as there
are sovereign
nations
possessing
great power, war
is inevitable.”
~Albert Einstein
History
The former Tarheel Missile Plant was originally built to house a textile manufacturing facility occupied by
A.M. Johnson Rayon Mills, Inc. comprising of the original 50,000 square foot, single story, manufacturing
building completed in 1927; in 1929 a call for expansion led to a second adjoining building of 70,000
square feet. The rayon plant shut down its operations in 1931, and the plant remained mostly vacant,
aside from a number of temporary uses, until it was purchased by The Defense Plant Corporation in
1942 and leased to Fairchild Engines and Airplane Corporation for the manufacture of training aircraft to
be supplied to the Army Air Force. Fairchild Aircraft Corporation enlisted the help of Albert Kahn and Associates, Albert Kahn himself being
the foremost industrial architect of his day, to design the required additions and renovations, including
high bay manufacturing space and an office addition. Fairchild Aircraft Corporation commenced the
manufacture of over one hundred AT-21 aircraft at the plant until they vacated the space to
accommodate their Durmamold Division whose finished products also supplied the aircraft industry.
Photo of Albert Kahn, founder of
Albert Kahn and Associates,
responsible for design of the
expansion and renovation efforts
required by the Fairchild Aircraft
Corporation for the production of the
AT-21 aircraft shown being
assembled at the facility.
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Fairchild vacated the property in October of 1944, and the premises was then leased to the Firestone
Tire and Rubber Corporation in December of that year to house their tank rebuilding program up until the
summer of the following year when their contract with the U.S. Army was cancelled. Upon the end of
World War II the plant was transferred to the General Services Administration, who leased the facility to
Western Electric Company.
During Western Electric’s tenure at the property they went from the manufacture of commercial
electronic equipment, to taking on defense contract work that led to building additions and expansions
that would accommodate a test and assembly facility for the Army’s Nike Ajax missile program, and the
production of missile ground guidance systems and components. In July of 1962 the plant was placed
under the jurisdiction of the Army Missile Command (MICOM) and in August 1963 it was designated the
Tarheel Army Missile Plant. In the early 1970s the United States entered into a treaty with the Soviet Union that effectively eliminated
the use of antimissile systems, including those produced in Burlington. This severely impacted
Burlington’s economy, as, at its height, Western Electric was Alamance County’s largest employer,
employing over 4,000 workers.
“A 5/21/43 photo of a crowd around a Fairchild AT-21,on the occasion of a speech by Governor Melville Broughton at the
flight of the first plane built at the plant.”1
Paul. Abandoned & Little Known Airfields. Digital image. Airfields-Freeman.com. Paul Freeman, 11 Sept.
2014. Web. 16 Mar. 2015. <http://www.airfields-freeman.com/NC/Airfields_NC_Greensboro.htm>.
1Freeman,
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Property Offering
Address:
204 North Graham Hopedale Road
Burlington, NC
Acres:
22.04 acres
Improvements:
25 buildings consisting of 720,588 sq. ft.
Original Albert Kahn photos and construction drawings are available through Albert Kahn & Associates
for the building improvements that their firm was responsible for in the early 1940s.
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Redevelopment Opportunities
Athletic/Event Space
With ample indoor/outdoor space, plenty of high bay warehouse and column free buildings, the features
of this property easily lend to an ideal location for a mixture of athletic and event space. As an example, The Factory in Wake Forest, NC is a 207,000 sq. ft. facility on approximately 18.75 acres
of land housing the YMCA, two NHL regulation ice rinks, indoor soccer, basketball and volleyball, a skate
park, ballet and gymnastics studios, an inflatable playground, outdoor baseball fields, and a number of
small retail studios and restaurants. It has quickly become the hub for families in the area allowing
parents a convenient centralized location to drop their kids for their various extracurricular activities.
Clockwise from top left, front entrance to the Factory’s main building, interior toy store retail space, interior gift shop retail
space, fountain at the front of the property, exterior building converted into two restaurant spaces.
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Mixed Use Developments
As an example of one of the most successful and well planned redevelopment projects featuring former
manufacturing and warehousing facilities repurposed into a mixed-use development, American Tobacco
Campus in Durham, NC features a mix of office, retail, restaurant, event space, a YMCA, theatre,
apartments, and one of the first incubator spaces catering to entrepreneurs in North Carolina.
This particular property lends particularly well to a number of mixed uses, including a combination of all
of those discussed in this offering. One of the specific needs that has been identified in this market is for
event space. Historic properties often act as an ideal backdrop for special events such as weddings,
birthdays, retirement parties, business events, etc. 6
Retirement/Assisted Living
According to the “Alamance County Community Profile” produced by the Alamance County Planning
Department and published March 2014, the baby boomer population representing those aged 48-66
years old has steadily increased over the past four years. Such an increase will lend to a greater need
for medical and rehabilitation services, retirement communities, assisted living facilities, and all other
services required of an aging population. The graph below shows the upward trend among the aging
populations in Alamance County from 2009-20122.
The subject property’s location lends well to these uses due to its centralized location between two of
North Carolina’s largest metros, The Triad and The Triangle. The location also boasts close proximity to
medical care, an EMS station, grocery stores, restaurants and discount retailers.
The property could be easily secured, the existing infrastructure supports a large, albeit dated,
commissary kitchen, and there is ample indoor and outdoor space to support all of the needs of a
retirement facility, also leaving the possibility of pulling some additional tenants to the site (medical
users, restaurant, retail, fitness, etc.) to provide for additional amenities to the residents on site.
This particular property would likely appeal to the nostalgia of World War II veterans, as well as retirees
who are native to Alamance County and/or grew up when the Tarheel Missile Facility was at its peak.
Most anyone who grew up in Alamance County during the peak of Western Electric recalls the plant and
can regale you with stories about people that worked on site.
Graph retrieved from Alamance County website at: Almanace County Community Profile. Washington: U.S. Govt.
Print. Off., 1968. Alamance-nc.com. Alamance County Planning Department, Mar. 2014. Web. 17 Mar. 2015. <http://
www.alamance-nc.com/planning/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2013/10/2014-Community-Profile.pdf>.
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Multifamily/Student Housing/Condos
Recently, major economic developments have occurred in Alamance County calling for the creation of
approximately 1,000 new jobs; Walmart’s decision to base its grocery distribution warehouse in
Alamance County brings an anticipated 450 new jobs; the new Sheetz distribution facility which opened
in November of 2014 with a promise of 250 new jobs by 2018; Cambro’s expansion with a promise of
100 new jobs; and Kayser-Roth and ARCA announcing that they each will be adding 50 new positions.
Statistics show that within the municipalities in Alamance County approximately 40% of the population
is currently housed in renter occupied units. Coupling those statistics alongside the anticipated job
growth, and factoring in the marked decrease in multi-family development since 2010, one would
surmise that a housing shortage may occur as the population begins to grow. At the very least, there is
a need for newer, more contemporary housing solutions.
The growing education sectors are also lending to a need for multi-family housing. While Alamance
County cites that its middle-aged population has experienced a decline over the past four years, they
note that the age group between 15 and 24 years has been on the rise, which they attribute to the
growth of Elon University. Elon boasts a student population of approximately 5,800 undergraduates and
700 graduates, and at least 2,500 of these students live in dwellings outside of the campus.
Alamance Community College has an enrollment of around 4,700 undergraduates, and does not offer
any campus housing. Both Elon University and Alamance Community College are less than 7 miles
away from the subject property. Additionally, the aesthetic appeal of repurposed industrial space will
appeal to the aesthetics of the younger generations representing the student population of each.
The site provides plenty of indoor and outdoor space to create amenities that would appeal to renters,
and even purchasers if condos and/or lofts were created. 8
Office
In April of 2014 it was announced that LabCorp, Alamance County’s top employer, would move nearly
1,000 employees out of downtown Burlington to a Guilford County location wherein the building could
provide “a modern facility with perks, such as a fitness area and free parking for employees” (Abernethy,
2014). While LabCorp’s CEO David King stated that the decision “was not without sleepless nights and
cost in the way the city sees us” (Times-News, 2015) having been faced with the costly and time
consuming alternative of renovating their existing dilapidated downtown Burlington buildings (which also
did not provide for ample parking for their employees) and the sheer lack of office availability in the
Alamance County market, the decision was all but forced upon them.
With only four office spaces 10,000 square feet and above being advertised on Loopnet in Alamance
County it would be difficult to retain or attract any large office users. Since office space is more densely
occupied than retail or industrial space, it would stand to reason that bringing companies with significant
office space needs would lend a great boost to the local economy. As time progresses, companies are coming to prefer a more open, collaborative office environment to
foster creativity and communication among its employees; and with that, many companies are trending
toward repurposing old and/or historic sites to provide a more contemporary environment with a more
aesthetic feel than provided by “traditional” office space, which is typically sectioned off by offices and
cubicles where dropped ceilings house fixtures that emanate harsh, artificial lighting.
Above (left) is a picture of traditional office space versus a more open, collaborative office environment (right). The photo
chosen on the right features a sawtooth roof which is also a feature of the original building at the subject property.
The subject property lends well to office renovation, allowing for multiple floors to be created in the high
bay warehouses, or multiple levels incorporated into a single floor. There is also an existing single-story
office building which could easily be renovated to provide for more office space on site.
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Above is a picture of the design created by architect, John Warasila, featuring his use of stacked conference rooms and
stadium seating in the McKinney space at American Tobacco Campus. Pictured below is the renovation of a former
warehouse building in the warehouse district downtown Raleigh, North Carolina to create office space for Citrix; design
also completed by John Warasila of Alliance Architecture.
To consult with Alliance Architecture:
Alliance Architecture, PC
P.O. Box 1090
Durham, NC 27702
(919) 682-6393
John Warasila, AIA
[email protected]
Mobile: (919) 618-4604
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Education/Government
Whether it be in the public or private sectors of education, or any number of municipal and government
related services, the population growth will spur a need for more space for schools and government
offices. With the Alamance-Burlington School System, Elon University, Alamance County Government,
City of Burlington and Alamance Community College all being among the top 10 employers in Alamance
County, all signs point to a growth in the education and government sectors in this region.
Since the subject property was built to house a number of defense operations, its very structure was
built to specifications that would be cost prohibitive today, thus lending to a greater element of safety
and security. Given the size of the property and layout of the buildings the property also lends well to a
campus type setting, even allowing for recreational and athletic facilities on site for educational use. Since schools generally need large blocks of space, and it is oftentimes difficult to find adequate office
space which is also very cost prohibitive, many schools, technical colleges and universities have been
driven to lease space in industrial parks, second generation retail spaces (former grocery stores,
Walmart buildings, etc.) and even flea market buildings. In the government sector, you will oftentimes
find their offices disparately spread out within the community among a number of offices, and oftentimes
trailers. One of the challenges facing government offices is building maintenance. Consolidation efforts
allow for ease and consistency of overall property maintenance. Industrial/Manufacturing/Distribution
As previously discussed, major developments in the industrial/manufacturing sector have occurred over
the past year, including the Walmart and Sheetz Distribution Facilities, and expansions of companies
already existing in Alamance County. Surprisingly, the facilities housing all of these industrial uses are
new developments. In speaking with the owners of second generation industrial product with vacancy, it
appears that the existing product on the market was never taken into consideration or presented to
these new users when touring the market. As a former industrial/manufacturing site, it is easy to surmise
that this property could once again be returned to its former use. Data Center
Due to the structure of the building, as discussed with the Educational/Government uses, the relatively
remote location, and the ease of securing the property, this would be an ideal location to house a data
center. There are also basement areas and underground tunnels that would allow for the networking of
systems required in a data center.
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204 N Graham Hopedale rd - Burlington, NC 27217
Historic Redevelopment Opportunity
For Sale
Property Description:
Known as the former Tarheel Missile Facility, this
property consists of 25 total buildings housing
approximately 720,000 square feet situated on 22.04
acres. This is an ideal redevelopment site in the
heart of Burlington, NC ready for a creative
developer to bring it back to life.
A portion of the improvements were completed by
the renowned Albert Kahn & Associates and the
original construction documents and photos are
available.
This is an ideal location for a mixed use project,
apartment community, retirement/assisted living
facility, athletic/event space, etc.
Sales Price: $3,500,000.00
[email protected]
Jay Sprayberry 919.270.1308
Kristi Boughter 919.423.1971
w w w . T h e I n d u s t r i a l E x p e r t s . c o m / T r12 i a d
* an af f iliat e of ND B Commercial *
Citations:
Abernethy, Michael D. "LabCorp Moving 975 Jobs from Downtown Burlington to Guilford County."
Thetimesnews.com. Times-News, 10 Apr. 2014. Web. 26 Mar. 2015. <http%3A%2F
%2Fwww.thetimesnews.com%2Fnews%2Ftop-news%2Flabcorp-moving-975-jobs-from-downtownburlington-to-guilford-county-1.303944>.
Almanace County Community Profile. Washington: U.S. Govt. Print. Off., 1968. Alamance-nc.com.
Alamance County Planning Department, Mar. 2014. Web. 17 Mar. 2015. <http://www.alamancenc.com/planning/wp-content/uploads/sites/21/2013/10/2014-Community-Profile.pdf>.
"Albert Kahn". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2015. Web. 16 Mar. 2015
<http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/309683/Albert-Kahn>.
Bolden, Don. "Two: The World War II Years." Images of America: Burlington. Charleston: Arcadia,
2009. 1-129. Print.
Covington, Owen, and Amy Dominello Braun. "Sheetz Chooses Burlington for Distribution Center,
Creating 254 Jobs - Greensboro - Triad Business Journal." Triad Business Journal. N.p., 05 Sept.
2012. Web. 23 Mar. 2015. <http://www.bizjournals.com/triad/news/2012/09/05/burlington-alamancecounty-approve.html?page=all>.
"Job and Investment Growth for the County, 2013 & 2014." Alamance County Economic
Development. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2015. <http://www.choosealamance.com/2014/01/30/job-andinvestment-growth-for-the-county-2013-2014/>.
"LabCorp Chief: Move Was Hard Decision." Thetimesnews.com. Times-News, 24 Jan. 2015. Web. 26
Mar. 2015. <http://www.thetimesnews.com/news/business/business-news/labcorp-chief-move-washard-decision-1.429182>.
Whitaker, Walter, Staley A. Cook, and A. Howard White. "Centennial History of Alamance County
1849-1949." Centennial History of Alamance County. Mary Ellis, 21 May 2000. Web. 16 Mar. 2015.
<http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mwellis/book/chapter16.html>.
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