The City of High Point plans to purchase a former industrial property and redevelop it into a “small-scale manufacturing” hub for southwest High Point. The City Council has authorized the purchase of 300 Oak St., a former Harriss & Covington hosiery plant and a current furniture showroom, along with a vacant 1.3-acre lot across the street, for $3 million. The city is seeking a federal grant to fund renovations to the property, which is composed of 64,000 sq ft of building space, as part of an $8.5 million project.
The goal is to establish a “small-scale manufacturing” headquarters in southwest High Point that would provide “equitable economic opportunity for residents through entrepreneurship, business scaling and workforce training,” according to the city. The hub would provide programming to help residents, especially minority and women-owned business enterprises and BIPOCs start and grow businesses. The concept is based on a city-led strategy to draw more small businesses that produce things to the old industrial areas that once housed furniture and textile plants in southwest High Point.