During the Rowan County Chamber of Commerce’s legislative breakfast last week, State Sen. Carl Ford, R-33, Reps. Harry Warren, R-76, and Wayne Sasser, R-67, say they see more job announcements coming for Rowan County.

The county needs to be ready for growth, Warren said.

“We have to have affordable housing,” Warren said. “We have to have workforce development. We have to be able to facilitate those by planning ahead. Being proactive rather than reactive to the growth that is coming over the next four, five years. I think it’s going to be explosive.”

Warren says there are jobs available, but North Carolina lacks a qualified workforce.

Rowan-Cabarrus Community College needs to have adequate funding, he said, adding he is in favor of a bond referendum on the March 3 ballot.

The $45 million general obligation bond will allow the college to build a Technology Education Complex, including a fire decontamination facility, a building for Rowan County Early College and other high school students and an area of for automotive, welding and machining programs. The center will provide new and renovated space to support technical education programs at the North Campus in Salisbury. A 96,000-square-foot building will be built and an existing building measuring 8,900 square-feet will be renovated.

Voters will decide if they are in favor of the bond in the primary election.

Ford said residents in Rowan and Stanly County can expect to hear more job announcements. He hinted at the expected relocation of Charlotte Pipe and Foundry to Stanly County when he said there was a big job announcement coming that most folks already knew a number of details about. While no official announcement has been made, a number of news reports have indicated the company would relocate from the city of Charlotte in a deal that would be hundreds of millions of dollars.

“If half the stuff that’s in the hopper now comes to fruition, we’ll be great,” Ford said.

Ford said there needs to be more housing developments, too.

Sasser said infrastructure needs to keep up with growth, including improving water and sewer and broadband services. 

Warren said reducing the corporate tax rate has made it possible to attract business to the state.

At Thursday’s breakfast, legislators also received the chamber’s priorities for the coming year.

On the list for education and workforce development was emphasized support for securing funding for short-term workforce training programs — internships and apprenticeships — to provide opportunities in manufacturing, distribution, administration and healthcare.

The chamber also listed supporting a tax policy that encourages growth and capital investment, recalculating the required average wages paid for projects that receive the Job Development and Investment Grant and Building Reuse grants, support agribusiness, supporting tax credits for historic preservation re-development and others.

Warren said the priorities list is a quick reference sheet.

“Sometimes you can tweak a bill, add an amendment to make a modification, to help the county out and meet the chamber’s goals,” he said.

He recommended local elected officials and business leaders reach out to legislators and let them know about needs. Collaboration and communication are key, he said.

Last day to request absentee ballot Tuesday

Tuesday is the last day to request a mail-in absentee ballot for the primary. The NC State Absentee Ballot Request Form must be received by the Rowan County Board of Elections, at 1935 Jake Alexander Blvd. S., by 5 p.m.

To receive an absentee ballot, a voter or the voter’s near relative — spouse, brother, sister, parent, grandparent, child, grandchild, mother-in-law, father-in-law, daughter-in-law, son-in-law, stepparent or stepchild — or a legal guardian must fill out the state absentee ballot request form at rowancountync.gov/DocumentCenter/View/10825/Absentee-Ballot-Request-Form-PDF.

Voters must provide their full legal name, date of birth, current residential address and a North Carolina driver license number, non-operator identification card number or the last four digits of their Social Security number.

If a voter needs assistance due to blindness, disability, or inability to read or write and no near relative or legal guardian of the voter was available, they must fill out that person’s name and address.

The voter or voter’s near relative or legal guardian must return the voter’s ballot in the container-return envelope in person or by mail to the county board of elections by 5 p.m. on March 3. It is a Class I felony for any other person to possess an absentee ballot. Mailed ballots received after 5 p.m. on Election Day will be counted only if postmarked by Election Day and received by mail by 5 p.m. three days after the election, March 6.

Early voting continues this week at the board of elections,

For more information, call 704-216-8140.