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Thursday, 25 January 2007 |
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by SARA HAYNES
Intern News Reporter
Lenoir is one of many North Carolina areas that have been devastated by the exportation of the furniture industry.
Hope is on the horizon, however, now that Google, Inc., has decided to build its next “server farm” in the city.
A server farm is a warehouse of sorts, housing thousands of computers
running applications for the company (such as sorting and storing
information).
With Google joining Dell and several other large companies in the Tar
Heel State, it is hoped that other corporations will see the benefits
of expanding into the High Country.
Chancellor Kenneth E. Peacock has met with officials from Google in
hopes that the company will see the benefits of a strong relationship
with Appalachian State University.
“We’re very encouraged by [Google’s] interest in the university,”
Peacock said. “The next step is to get them here. Nothing will help
them catch the Appalachian spirit better than being on-campus.”
While the university hopes to help ease Google’s transition to the High
Country, it is also hoped that having the company nearby will encourage
speakers to stop by campus while they’re in the state.
Nothing has been decided in relation to whether or not the company will
be looking at Appalachian students for jobs or internships, but the
administration hopes this will eventually be the case.
The presence of this company will cause Lenoir real estate to leap up in value.
The building will need great amounts of water, electricity and air conditioning.
Most leaders in the city believe the employment of these utilities and
the increased value of real estate will be a major boost for the Lenoir
economy.
Google’s decision, however, has not been without controversy.
The state of North Carolina waived 100 percent of Google’s business
property taxes and 80 percent of its real estate taxes for the next
three decades.
“We have given away the farm and have gotten almost nothing in return,”
T.J. Rohr, a Lenoir City Council member, said of the tax breaks.
Many Lenoir residents are livid that their small businesses are not receiving the breaks that Google will enjoy.
While some feared that Google would bring outsiders in to fill the
specialized job openings, the company asserts that it will work to
train current residents for those positions.
Google was named No. 1 on Fortune magazine’s list of the hundred best companies to work for this year.
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