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Furniture factory expected to
boost efforts to revive Southside's economy
by Heather
B. Hayes
for Virginia Business
November 2006
Southside Virginia officials believe that plans to build
a furniture factory in the Danville area will signal
that the region is on the rebound.
Swedwood North America, a subsidiary of the Swedish
home furnishings retailer IKEA, will build an 810,000-square-foot
factory in the Cane Creek Centre industrial park. The
facility, which will be built in three phases, will initially
employ 300 people but its work force is expected to climb
to 740.
The announcement is "an opportunity to showcase
our work force’s talents and willingness to work," Jerry
Gwaltney, Danville’s city manager, said in statement.
Southside Virginia has been buffeted in recent years
by plant closings and a decline in tobacco farming. The
region has been battling back, recruiting companies such
as Yorktowne Cabinetry Inc., which also has a plant in
the Cane Creek park.
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