Asheville better start making room. There is a lot of street talk about New Belgium Brewing making an announcement about building a second brewery there. WLOS 13 in Asheville is reporting that the announcement is close….
It’s not official yet but there are indications that craft beer maker New Belgium has chosen Asheville as it’s new home. Sources close to the negotiations as well as local brewers believe the announcement to build a brewery in Asheville’s River Arts District could come as soon as Thursday.
Philadelphia is the other city being considered, but rumor has it – it has all but been ruled out.
Update 1o AM 4/4 – Looking like this might be pretty serious. A “stage” is being constructed, state trooper are there as a part of the Governor’s protection detail. Apparently formal announcement coming tomorrow.
Interesting that asheville won. Everything I heard was that company execs wanted philly as it provided greater access to the NE corridor. Which is what they were really after: improved access to all the markets from DC to Boston. But all the employees wanted asheville because they preferred living there rather than philly.