ROCKINGHAM — One local manufacturer has room to expand after buying property from the city.
The Rockingham City Council approved a negotiated sale of approximately 30 acres in the Rockingham Industrial Park West to Latham Pool Products during its August meeting.
The price tag on the land sale was $150,000.
City Manager Monty Crump said the city has been in discussions “for a while” with Latham Pools regarding the company buying land around its existing facility.
Latham made an offer, which was accepted by the council in July, and Crump said there were no upset bids.
Crump said Latham wanted the land for a buffer and potential expansion.
In June 2025, County Manager Bryan Land told commissioners that business for Latham had “really ramped up” since the pandemic, and that the company had added another outside storage area and around 20 new employees.
The sale of the land is more than what the city initially paid for the entire 211 acres, according to Crump, who noted the “good investment” made years ago — though it was controversial at the time, with a 3-2 vote by the council.
Crump made a similar observation in 2024 when the city sold 21 acres to Duke Energy for an operations center.
Other companies in the industrial park are Piedmont Natural Gas, General Glass International, CAI Inks and Impact Plastics.
The board also appointed Michelle Davis as an in-city alternate to the city’s Board of Adjustment to fill the unexpired term of the late Rick Byrd. That term expires in 2028.
Later in the meeting, Crump told the council that renovations on the old Food King building should be complete by Aug. 21.
“After that, we’ll move forward with a decision on how to dispose of that property,” Crump said, adding that there was “active interest” from potential tenants. “I think it’s in the best interest of our city to put it back on the tax base … and let a private entity do the leasing and run that as a private business.”
The city purchased the 20,000 square foot former grocery store building on the corner of East Washington and Randolph streets for $60,000 in 2018.
In 2021, the estimated cost of repairs and upfitting was $2.5-3 million.
Rockingham received more than $1 million to help with renovation costs, including $300,000 from the state budget and a $750,000 grant from the N.C. Department of Commerce Rural Economic Division.
In 2024, the council approved a conveyance by private negotiation to Wam Pum Holdings, LLC. The terms, in part, required the company to spend at least $1.1 million in improvements.
Crump also told the council that he should have information regarding the wastewater treatment plant at the September meeting.
