Benson, NC (population <5,000) will soon be home to a $918 million advanced manufacturing facility tied to national defense and supply-chain security. The project is expected to generate ~1,000 jobs, positioning the town as a strategic node rather than a peripheral market.
Key real estate and development signals:
🔹 Infrastructure and preparedness matter
• The presence of a 500,000 SF, turn-key industrial facility was a deciding factor
• Speed-to-occupancy continues to outweigh speculative land availability
🔹 Labor access drives site selection
• Proximity to major highways, Raleigh, and Fort Bragg expands the labor shed
• Military and technical talent availability influenced final location choice
🔹 Downstream impact is already visible
• Increased demand expected for industrial, retail, and mixed-use assets
• Early local investment in downtown and mixed-use redevelopment is being validated
This is not an overnight story—it is the result of years of site readiness and capital alignment.
For owners and operators in secondary markets, this underscores how prepared assets capture outsized opportunity.
https://www.wral.com/news/local/johnston-county-town-benson-national-security-hub-2025
