The city of Danville announced today that Jarrett Welding and Machine Inc. is the recipient of a Local Enterprise Zone Job Creation Grant. The company is located in a Virginia Enterprise Zone and qualified for the grant because of recent job creation in the city. The grant amount was $18,750.
Danville’s enterprise zone program is an economic development program managed by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development. The program is designed to offer state and local incentives for businesses to locate or expand within the designated zone areas. Danville has two enterprise zones, consisting of 3,551 acres of commercial, industrial, retail and office spaces.
Co-owners John and Cindy Carey purchased Jarrett Welding in April 2011 – rescuing the company from going out of business due to the death of the previous owner. The purchase saved eight jobs. Over the past year, the total number of employees has grown to 19.
“Our success is a true testament to our dedicated, loyal employees and overwhelming support from the community,” said John Carey. “We are thankful to the city of Danville for acknowledging our growth and assisting small businesses in the area. This grant will assist us in purchasing additional equipment and performing system upgrades.”
Mayor Sherman Saunders said, “Jarrett Welding is a wonderful example of a small business that is thriving in this challenging economic environment. Providing quality jobs for the community is our top priority, and I applaud the efforts made by John and his team at Jarrett Welding and Machine.”
Several employees are graduates of Danville Community College’s welding and machinery programs and have been employed by the company for decades. DCC President Carlyle Ramsey said, “Danville Community College has enjoyed an extraordinary relationship with Jarrett Welding for more than 30 years. In the past few months, we have had several constructive conversations with the general manager, Jamie Parsons, about the future, and I believe that it is a very exciting future in terms of value-added jobs, especially in welding and precision machining. We look forward to referring highly skilled and talented technicians to Jarrett in the near future.”
The 40,000 square-foot facility is made up of three separate buildings and spans both sides of Goodyear Boulevard. The company manufactures custom-made wrought iron and design-build structural steel for schools, industrial applications and homebuilders. It also offers full-service CNC machining from custom parts to production runs. Clients include contractors, manufacturers and Homeland Security.