Augusta Granite builds in Grovetown

An Augusta-based stone countertop company is planting its foundation outside Grovetown, one of two companies growing inside Horizon South Industrial Park, county officials said.

//

Zack Daffin, the executive director of the Development Authority of Columbia County, announced Wednesday that Augusta Granite Co. recently broke ground on a countertop fabrication facility and showroom on John Deere Parkway near Wrightsboro Road.

Carl Wallace, a co-owner of Augusta Granite, said his company plans to open a 14,500-square-foot building, including a 3,800-square-foot showroom, in the spring. The building will also feature a 10,000-square-foot fabrication facility.

Augusta Granite supplies custom countertops to commercial and residential clients.

The building should open by February or March, Wallace said, and the company will close its current location on River Watch Parkway.

The new building is expected to cost nearly $1 million, with about $1 million in state-of-the-art machinery and computer cutting systems, he said.

During the development board meeting, Daffin said Palmetto Industries, a packaging company at Horizon South, intends to expand its building by 18,000 to 30,000 square feet.

In other business, Daffin said the company temporarily leasing the county's speculative building on Wrightsboro Road in Horizon South is wrapping up its operations within the next few weeks. Toledo, Ohio-based Dana Corp., a parts supplier to John Deere, signed a 90-day lease agreement for the building with the development authority in June.

Daffin said other companies have expressed interest in leasing the site long-term, but no agreements have been reached.