RICHMOND - Governor Mark R. Warner today announced that Virginia-based Augusta Lumber Company will locate a new facility in King William County. Through a $5 million investment in facilities and inventory, the company will create 65 new jobs. Augusta Lumber is headquartered in Waynesboro, Virginia and currently operates four sawmills and a hardwood flooring plant in Virginia, employing 325 people across the state. Virginia successfully competed with Kentucky and West Virginia for the investment.
“I am pleased that Augusta Lumber’s positive experience in Virginia has led to its decision to reinvest in the state,” said Governor Warner. “The company will create valuable job opportunities for the people of King William County.”
Augusta Lumber Company brings more than 40 years experience in the wood products industry. The company owns sawmills in North Garden, Amissville, Staunton and Warm Springs and buys hardwood timber throughout Virginia and the surrounding states. The corporate office and site of the flooring plant is in Waynesboro. The business is privately held by Mitchell Carr and his three sons. Approximately 50 percent of the company’s business is overseas with a heavy concentration in the Far East and Europe. Augusta Lumber is Virginia’s largest exporter of wood products, shipping 2,000 containers a year from the Port of Virginia.
“Virginia is ideal for companies that export because of the access to the Port of Virginia,” said Mitchell Carr, CEO of Augusta Lumber. “From our new King William County facility we will be able to load containers and ship directly to the Port – saving both time and money. The local officials of King William County have gone out of their way to assist us and make us feel welcome.”
The Virginia Economic Development Partnership, the Virginia Port Authority and King William County assisted Augusta Lumber with its decision. The Virginia Department of Business Assistance will provide workforce training services.
“We are delighted to welcome Augusta Lumber Company to King William County,” said L. E. “Gene” Byrum, Jr., Chairman of the King William County Board of Supervisors. “Fostering a strong business climate that generates capital investment and creates jobs is a top priority for the King William County Board of Supervisors.”