|
| Sunken City Brewing Company will create at least 20 jobs |
Staff Photo by Stacey Hairston:
Sunken City Brewing Company, Franklin County’s first microbrewery, broke ground Thursday morning during a ceremony at Smith Mountain Lake. Pictured, from left, are Phyllis Karavatakis, Vicki Gardner, Ann Blair Miller, Michael Burnett, Jerome Parnell, Jim Parnell, Bob Camicia and Ron Willard.
|
Monday, September 3, 2012
By STACEY HAIRSTON - Staff Writer
Sunken City Brewing Company, Franklin County's first microbrewery, broke ground Thursday morning during a ceremony at Smith Mountain Lake.
"Franklin County is delighted to welcome a new business that diversifies our economy and provides a destination for residents and visitors at the lake," said Bob Camicia, the Gills Creek representative on the Franklin County Board of Supervisors.
The brewery's founder, Jerome Parnell III, owns the trademark to the lake area's signature beer, Dam Lager.
"We believe the combination of a growing demand for craft brews, the region's low cost of doing business and growth at Smith Mountain Lake positions us nicely for future success," he said.
Sunken City, named after the villages that were flooded when the lake was dammed, will be located along Route 122 in Westlake Towne Center near Smith Mountain Lake.
The 8,800-square-foot project is expected to cost $2.3 million and will feature a production brewery, tasting room and an outdoor beer garden, Parnell said. It is also expected to create 20-25 new jobs within its first five years, growing at three to five positions per year.
"We welcome the addition of this exciting new type of business to the Smith Mountain Lake community," added Ron Willard Sr., president of The Willard Companies and developer of Westlake Towne Center. "Sunken City is a great example of Westlake's continued development as a destination where everything is at the center of it all." |
| |
