INNOVATION IN STREET RESURFACING AND BEYOND Mayor Hayes identifies three priorities for the next 18 months: increasing tax base, expanding workforce opportunities, and ensuring infrastructure can support both goals. The city’s 126 miles of streets, rated poor for years, now receive unprecedented investment through a strategic three-pronged approach. One application, Pressure Pave, is a first for North Carolina municipalities. “Usually, it’s kind of a mill and fill where they get down to the bed level and then asphalt it,” Mayor Hayes explains. “Well, this Siemens’ East Coast hub and will be the city’s largest taxpayer in history. US Foods followed with a 220,000-square-foot Stock Yards distribution center expected to open in early 2026, bringing 100 jobs by late 2027. Divert, the state’s first food waste diversion and renewable natural gas company, adds approximately 50 positions. “After we landed the Siemens mobility opportunity, then next came US Foods,” Mayor Hayes says. “Having a diversity of businesses is important and also having a diversity of needs from an employee standpoint as well.” 36 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 06, ISSUE 11
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