Texas Company Plans New Facility Outside Athens

By T.A. DeFeo | The Center Square contributor, The Center Square Georgia

November 21, 2022

(The Center Square) – A Texas-based millwork manufacturer plans to spend millions on a new facility outside Athens, and Georgia taxpayers will cover the cost of workforce training.

San Antonio-based Steves & Sons plans to invest more than $100 million over the next three years on a new 310,000-square-foot facility in Jackson County. It plans to produce molded door skins annually for new housing construction, repair and remodeling. According to a release, "the company will create 170 jobs as part of the project."

The state included Georgia Quick Start workforce training, which provides “customized, job-specific training,” as an incentive for the company.

“The only discretionary incentive involved in this project is Georgia Quick Start, which will provide training support valued at approximately $664,870,” a Georgia Department of Economic Development rep told The Center Square.

In a release, Scott Martin, chairman of the Jackson County Industrial Development Authority, said local officials “have worked long and hard to make Jackson County a place where both businesses and people want to be, and Steve & Sons’ decision to locate in Jackson County is proof of that.”

In December, Steves & Sons announced a new facility in Ashburn with plans to create 200 jobs.

“Georgia has proven to be extremely helpful to Steves for our long-term manufacturing and distribution needs,” Edward Steves, CEO of Steves & Sons, said in a release.

The focus of the work of The Center Square Georgia is state and local-level government and economic reporting that approaches stories with a taxpayer sensibility.