Center Deemed Economic Driver for Upstate South Carolina by Officials
Greenville, S.C., March 3, 2014 … Hendrick Construction recently completed the Army Aviation Support Facility at Donaldson Field in Greenville, S.C. The 110,000-square-foot administration and maintenance facility will house 10 helicopters, and be operated by 75 full-time military technicians and serve as the base for 200 Guardsmen. Already, elected officials are hailing the center as an economic engine for the region.
“We are proud of our involvement with the new Army Aviation Support Facility,” said Roger Hendrick of Hendrick Construction, the general contractor for the new center. “This facility further solidifies the area as an aviation hub, creating jobs and generating economic growth.”
The facility, located on 34 acres at the South Carolina Technology and Aviation Center (SC-TAC), includes hangars, supply, storage, allied shops, administration, classrooms, locker rooms and an emergency aviation operations center. The Guard, in partnership with Greenville Technical College, will train and certify Army National Guard helicopters as Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airframe and Powerplant technicians at SC-TAC.
“The Greenville aviation facility will form a basis of a regional, future Army aviation training site,” said Maj. Gen. Lester Eisner, deputy adjutant general of the S.C. National Guard. “This is truly a big deal for South Carolina – not just the aviation family. It is an economic enabler for South Carolina.”
“Make no mistake, the goal for this is to not just be the center, but the epicenter of the aviation universe,” said U.S. Congressman Trey Gowdy who represents the Fourth District where the facility is located.
“From an economic development point of view, we need to celebrate this as if it was a major achievement to bring new business in – because it is,” said U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham.
Col. Pete Brooks, spokesman for the S.C. Army National Guard, said the aviation center will give the National Guard an alternative location for its aircraft in the event of hurricanes. The current base of operations is just outside Columbia, and “we sometimes get 100 mile-per-hour winds in Columbia,” Brooks said. The facility will enable the S.C. Army National Guard to maintain readiness of its aviation operations while providing increased coverage to the state in response to disasters.
The Army Aviation Center is just the latest installment for an economic engine of growth that has risen from the closed Air Force base that Greenville city and county purchased in 1963.
Hendrick Construction, Inc. is a Charlotte, N.C.-based general contractor that provides commercial construction services throughout the Southeast. The company’s portfolio includes facilities for corporate headquarters, manufacturing, industrial, health care and bio-tech companies, as well as schools, government buildings, churches, entertainment venues and restaurants.
