Fed Hex

By Carey Hamilton

September 25, 2000 Web posted at: 1:06 PM EDT (1706 GMT)

GREENSBORO, North Carolina (Winston-Salem Journal) -- Opponents of a proposed Federal Express hub packed a school auditorium yesterday, rallying against the $300 million project and learning what they can do to stop it.

''The Federal Express hub threatens our families, our homes and our way of life,'' said speaker Ron Gogan, a High Point resident who worries that FedEx will cause irreparable damage to the area's quality of living. ''The Triad deserves better and we can do better.''

The hub is scheduled to open in 2005. However, the Federal Aviation Administration has delayed by six months a final study on the projected environmental effects of a third runway at Piedmont Triad International Airport. The airport would need the runway to handle the 126 flights that FedEx wants to add nightly.

The company delivers packages and letters throughout the world.

A group of organizations, including the Piedmont Quality of Life Coalition, the Sierra Club and Citizens for Responsible Government, held the protest to let residents know that FedEx and the airport haven't made a final deal.

Speakers urged residents to boycott FedEx, speak at airport-board meetings and write letters to local, state and federal officials.

For months, residents have criticized the plan, saying that it will generate more noise as more planes use the airport, increase air pollution and deplete the water supply. They also say that FedEx's fleet of trucks will further congest traffic in the region.

Opponents of the plan said during the rally that the hub will harm the entire Triad, including Forsyth County, not just a few neighborhoods near the aiport.

''The air pollution from the FedEx hub is going to affect more than just a small group of people,'' said Tom Billheimer, a Summerfield resident. ''FedEx is going to turn the Triad into a giant shipping and warehousing center.''

The rally began with the ear-piercing sound of an airplane flying overhead.

''We already hear that,'' said Wes Hixon, who lives outside of Summerfield. ''If FedEx comes, you won't be able to sleep from 10 to 1 in the morning and from 3 to 5 in the morning.''

The FedEx hub is expected to eventually employ 1,500 workers. Economic developers in Guilford and Forsyth counties support the hub, saying that it will add $1.7 billion to the Triad's economy in the first 10 years.

Allen Joines, the president of the Winston-Salem Alliance, a nonprofit group that deals with economic issues , said he sees the project as a catalyst for growth in Forsyth County.

He said he believes that FedEx will draw other businesses to the region that want to be close to the shipping service, spurring more jobs.

''Forsyth County stands an excellent opportunity to get a good portion of that, and we feel like FedEx is important to our rejuvenation,'' Joines said. ''We're very concerned without projects like FedEx we're going to continue to decline as far as job growth.''

Opponents contend that the FedEx jobs are low-paying and are not worth the $80 million in tax incentives that FedEx wants.

State Sen. Robert G. Shaw, R-Guilford, told the protesters he believes that FedEx chose to build its mid-Atlantic sorting hub in North Carolina because the state is not heavily unionized and it can pay lower wages than those paid in other states.

''Fed Ex hasn't said what they're going to pay, and they'll lowball us if they can,'' Shaw said.

Janice Skelly, a 1996 graduate of Wake Forest University law school, said that the area needs higher-paying jobs.

''I think we need to bring in more high-tech jobs,'' Skelly said. ''And I think it will harm the environment too much to outweigh any economic benefits.''

For more Local news, myCNN.com will bring you news from the areas and subjects you select.

AL, Birmingham, WBMA AL, Huntsville, WAAY FL, Orlando, WKMG FL, Tallahassee, WTXL FL, Tampa, Bay News 9 FL, Tampa, WFLA FL, Fort Myers/Naples, WINK FL, Jacksonville, WJXT FL, Miami, WPLG FL, Miami, WSVN GA, Atlanta, WGCL GA, Augusta, WJBF   GA, Augusta, WRDW GA, Columbus, WTVM GA, Macon, WGXA GA, Savannah, WSAV GA, Savannah, WTOC KY, Louisville, WHAS LA, New Orleans, WGNO LA, New Orleans, WWL MS, Columbus, WCBI NC, Charlotte, WBTV NC, Charlotte, WCCB   NC, Raleigh-Durham, WLFL SC, Charleston, WCIV SC, Charleston, WCSC SC, Columbia, WOLO SC, Greenville, WHNS SC, Myrtle Beach, WBTW TN, Chattanooga, WDEF TN, Chattanooga, WDSI TN, Knoxville, WATE TN, Nashville, WTVF VA, Norfolk, WTKR VA, Roanoke, WSLS