LEE COUNTY ACQUIRES BUGGY FACTORY BUILDING

Lee County, NC — July 1, 2022 — Lee County Government is the proud new owner of the Buggy Factory Building located at 115 Chatham Street, Sanford, NC.

The Lee County Commissioners voted at their June 20, 2022 meeting to finalize the purchase of the Buggy Factory Building and the County officially closed on the property yesterday, June 30^th.

The Buggy Factory, which was previously owned by Progressive Development Corporation, has been leased in part by Lee County and the City of Sanford since 2016 to provide a one-stop shop for residents and developers to access consolidated services for Environmental Health, Planning and Community Development (providing permits, land use, and zoning assistance), and Strategic Services. Community partners including the Sanford Area Growth Alliance and Sanford Chamber of Commerce will also continue leasing space within the building.

Another benefit of the purchase is the continued preservation of a historically significant site. The Sanford Buggy Company was formed and the brick factory built in 1907. At the time, the building was only two stories tall and produced buggies, light two-seated vehicles and one-horse rockaways. In 1924, the building was converted to the Brown Buick automobile showroom and garage, then the Sanford Furniture Company acquired it in the 1940s and added the third story in order to accommodate additional manufacturing efforts to first produce bed frames and headboards, then wooden bumpers for tugboats used in WWII. Around 1970, Cascade Fibers moved in and produced table linens until 2001, when Progressive purchased the building.

Lee County Board of Commissioners Chairman Kirk Smith said, “We are looking forward to continuing our partnerships and the convenience of the one-stop shop for the benefit of the community. This purchase represents the County’s commitment to providing accessible services in a centralized location.”

For media inquiries, please contact Hailey Hall, Communications Specialist at (919) 718-4605 or hhall@leecountync.gov.

Photo of the Buggy Factory Building courtesy of the Rant.

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