
Golden LEAF recognizes that rural and economically distressed communities must have sites available for development to attract new businesses and create opportunities for existing businesses to expand. To address this need, Golden LEAF created the SITE Program.
The SITE Program offers resources to help communities identify potential sites for economic development, provides funding to complete due diligence on publicly controlled sites, and provides funding to extend public utilities to publicly controlled sites or to conduct clearing and rough grading of publicly owned sites. The three phases of the SITE Program are Identification, Due Diligence, and Development.
At their December meeting, the Golden LEAF Board awarded $1,500,000 to Robeson County for clearing and grading, erosion control, adding backfill, and creating an access road for a site in the COMTech Business Park.
COMtech Business Park is a 700 acre site within Robeson County that serves to attract people of various industries and gather them all in one centralized location. The Journal published a story on the development a year ago.

AFCEA- NC Fort Bragg Chapter’s annual summit brings together leaders from industry, academic and research institutions, innovation hubs, Veteran organizations and elite Army and Special Operations commands. Graphic provided by Phil Williams
Fayetteville brokers and agents are entering 2026 with cautious optimism about what lies ahead.
Located at 225 Hay St. in downtown Fayetteville, Cameo Art House Theatre has two auditoriums and screens films ranging from classics to new releases. The theater also prioritizes spotlighting local and up-and-coming filmmakers. Photo by James Throsse