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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

California–based Green Flash Brewing Company Selects Virginia Beach, Virginia As Its East Coast Hub

03/15/2013
San Diego, California-based Green Flash Brewing Co. selected Virginia Beach, Virginia, for its new East Coast brewing operation. According to city officials, the craft beer producer will invest approximately $20 million in a 58,000-square-foot facility at Corporate Landing Business Park, with plans to hire 41 full time employees.

“The Mid-Atlantic region provided logistical advantages,” said Lisa Hinkley of Green Flash. “Virginia is a great place to do business, has a developing craft beer culture, and Virginia Beach felt like home.”

The brewery will include a 7,400-square-foot tasting room, retail store, event space, outdoor beer garden and brewery tour program. Production at the new facility is estimated to be 100,000 barrels of beer per year. Construction is slated to start in 2014 with an anticipated opening in 2015.

Mayor William D. Sessoms, Jr. said Green Flash Brewing Co. will purchase 7.76 acres from the Virginia Beach Development Authority for $1.35 million. On-site retail sales are projected to be $1 to $1.5 million annually.

“The Virginia Beach business environment proves to be a strategic advantage for companies looking for an East Coast location”, said Mayor Sessoms. “We are proud Green Flash chose to invest in our community. A craft brewery of this stature will be a great asset and further diversify the many attractions enjoyed by our residents and visitors alike.”

Virginia Beach competed with other East Coast locations for this project,” said Warren D. Harris, director of Virginia Beach Economic Development. “We knew they wanted a coastal location. We have been working with them since May to make sure they knew how Virginia Beach could play a role in the success of the new facility. We’re thrilled to welcome them here, and we look forward to being Green Flash’s East Coast home base.”

Like San Diego, Virginia Beach offers Green Flash a resort destination and proximity to a strong military population. The new plant will be similar although slightly larger than the San Diego facility. It will include the same state-of-the-art manufacturing capabilities, capacity and footprint to ensure product quality and consistency. The East Coast location will allow the company to improve its time-to-market performance. About 40 percent of its beers are sold to locations between the Carolinas and Massachusetts. It is estimated that 95 percent of the beer produced in Virginia Beach will be shipped out of state.

The Virginia Beach Development Authority will meet on March 19 to formally approve an Economic Development Investment Program grant to Green Flash Brewing Co. in the amount of $275,000 based on the capital investment and the number of jobs created.

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