In the newspaper business, we call this column and things of its ilk “standing features” — items that run every week, usually in the same place, both to fill space and to appeal to certain audiences.
When I started this, I didn’t think I’d be able to sustain it this long nor did I expect the response I’ve gotten. I’m grateful for everyone who’s emailed me or told me in person that they enjoy the Corner Store and what I’m sharing.
So with that, here we go on this week’s three things we’re talking about at Zach’s Corner Store.
Alotech, 3M win manufacturing awards
The Goldston-based Alotech and 3M, which has a plant in Pittsboro, have won 2019 Manufacturing Leadership Awards from the North Carolina Manufacturing Extension Partnership, or NCMEP, for being “outstanding leaders” in the fields of innovation and workforce development, respectively.
Alotech, which provides re-manufacturing prototyping and product development services, was honored particularly for its work in helping companies improve processes. The NCMEP press release on the awards cited a remanufacturing customer whose riveting removal process led to 15 reportable injuries every year as well as “intensive” labor. Alotech was able to automate the process, which reduced labor time by 80 hours a week and dropped reportable injuries to 0.
3M was awarded for its employee outreach in several areas, particularly technical, strategic and cultural. The NCMEP press release said the company offers maintenance apprenticeships which combine teaching and working as well as hiring college students with the possibility of longer-term jobs after graduation.
In a statement, the Chatham Economic Development Corporation said it was “proud to work with companies like Alotech and 3M, and we are grateful for the recognition of their efforts here in Chatham County.”
Taco Bell under construction in Siler City
But wait, doesn’t Siler City already have a Taco Bell?
Yes and no.
The current Taco Bell is located in the same building as a Kentucky Fried Chicken but will soon get its own standalone spot next to the Smithfield’s in the Walmart parking lot off of U.S. Hwy. 64. You’ll see construction under way when you drive by. We reported on the restaurant’s relocation in September and said the Taco Bell was expected to be complete by December. The KFC will stay in its current building and take over the whole space. The same group owns both restaurants and lots.
Earlier this month, the Siler City Board of Commissioners approved annexing the land on which the Taco Bell sits into the town, part of the requirements in the Siler City Unified Development Ordinance.
Teachers or tax cuts?
I’ve been doing news journalism in North Carolina for more than three years now, and the dichotomy in the subhead above this has been on politicians’ lips and minds ever since I started.
According to the Raleigh News & Observer, N.C. Gov. Roy Cooper talked to a group of business leaders at the North Carolina CEO Forum recently. Cooper has been at the center of a state budget battle this year, with one of his primary complaints being that the GOP-led General Assembly didn’t raise teacher salaries enough for his liking. The GOP has pushed for and gotten corporate tax cuts over the last few years.
“When business has a choice between further cuts in corporate taxes or investments in our teachers, I hope you will say investments in our teachers,” Cooper said, according to the N&O, “because the CEOs I talk to aren’t complaining to me about our corporate tax structure. What they are complaining about is filling the jobs that they have with talented workers.”
Whether or not this is a true this-or-that situation is up for debate, but I doubt we’ve heard the last of this. Maybe it will go on for another three years. If you’re a corporate taxpayer in Chatham County and want to weigh in on this for me, I’d love to hear from you at zhorner@chathamnr.com.
Reporter Zachary Horner can be reached at zhorner@chathamnr.com or on Twitter at @ZachHornerCNR. He writes about education and government.