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General Info

The Town of Benson is centrally located in North Carolina at the intersection of the Eastern United States largest Interstates, I-40 and I-95. Benson is approximately 30 minutes from the Research Triangle Park, 40 minutes from the nations largest military installation, Fort Bragg located in Fayetteville North Carolina.

Education/Training Facilities

Education is a key component for all location decisions. Twenty-two percent of Johnston County's workforce is employed in manufacturing. Manufacturing operations include companies such as Caterpillar, Eaton Corporation, Novo Nordisk, Bayer Corporation, and more, as well as numerous distribution operations. You can obtain a List of Current Manufacturing Facilities online or through the Economic Development Office. Because of interconnecting interstates and US highways, labor migration in and out is accomplished easily. A significant portion of Johnston County's workforce commutes to work outside the county, primarily in Wake County. Wake County is the home of North Carolina State University (NCSU), Peace College, Shaw University, Wake Technical Community College, NC State Government, and medical complexes including Wake Medical, Rex Community Hospital, Raleigh Community Hospital, as well as an extensive service economy. Johnston Community College, located on a 100-acre campus in neighboring Smithfield, offers associate degree programs and specialty training for industries. Under the new and expanding industry program, custom designed courses offered by industries can be taught at no charge to new employees. This program is also available to companies that are currently located here and are expanding.

State-Level Assistance for New Industries

Specific areas within Johnston County have applied for and been designated as State Development Zones. These areas offer state tax abatements greater than what is currently offered under the William S. Lee Quality Jobs and Business Expansion Act. Johnston County is currently listed as a Tier 5 category and is able to offer tax incentives for new and expanding businesses as outlined in that tax program. You can obtain a list of the County Development Zones through the Economic Development Office.For more information, see the Department of Commerce's William S. Lee web page.