Hampton Lumber to Build $225M Sawmill in Allendale County, Creating 125+ Jobs

Hampton Lumber has selected Allendale County for its first East Coast sawmill, committing a planned $225 million investment to build a 375,000-square-foot facility near Highway 321 and Barker Mill Pond Road outside Fairfax. The company projects operations targeted for 2027 and estimates more than 125 start-up jobs, a significant industrial addition in a largely rural county.

The mill will bring direct manufacturing payroll to an area that has seen limited industrial expansion in recent years. Local leaders expect the project to generate secondary demand for logging crews, trucking firms, equipment suppliers and maintenance services, creating ripple effects for small businesses across the county. Workforce development partnerships with regional agencies and technical colleges are expected to prepare local residents through pre-hire training and apprenticeship programs tied to the project.

Construction and permitting remain critical factors for the schedule. State and local coordination is underway to secure necessary permits and to plan infrastructure improvements around the site. Site plans and permitting processes typically address traffic, noise and environmental mitigation, and local officials have signaled that road upgrades and other improvements will be part of the project review. These upgrades could help absorb an increase in heavy truck traffic along routes that residents use daily.

Job seekers should monitor Hampton’s careers page and local workforce partners for openings as the company moves toward hiring. Regional workforce agencies and technical colleges generally coordinate pre-hire and apprenticeship programs, which can shorten the transition from training to employment for people already living in the county. For truckers, loggers and local suppliers, the facility represents potential steady contracts over the long term rather than seasonal spikes.

Economically, the sawmill represents both short-term construction activity and longer-term industrial jobs that may broaden the county’s tax base. A 125+ person operation is unlikely to replace broader challenges such as rural population decline, but it can stabilize income streams and support secondary businesses that multiply local economic activity. Local government will need to balance infrastructure costs against expected tax and employment benefits.

For residents of Fairfax and Allendale County, the next milestones will be permitting decisions, construction timelines and the rollout of workforce programs. As plans advance toward the targeted 2027 start of operations, locals will see planning meetings, roadwork and job listings become more frequent. The project could mark a notable shift in the county’s economic landscape, offering industrial jobs and new business for the timber supply chain while testing local infrastructure and planning capacities.