By Scott Miller
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GREENVILLE -- If the city of Greenville decides to buy the former Hitachi building for $10 million, Proterra Inc. may occupy a portion of it to get its bus-building operations off the ground.

That’s one option the city is considering as part of its commitment to provide the company temporary startup space, said Greenville Mayor Knox White.

Proterra announced plans Thursday to build a $68 million, 240,000-square-foot manufacturing and R&D facility at the Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research.

The company plans to assemble electric buses and develop energy-storage technologies at the site and employ 1,300 people. Construction is expected to begin this spring, with operation beginning next year.

In the meantime, Proterra could occupy the former Hitachi building, 575 Mauldin Road, or some other city-provided startup space, White said.

The city entered into a purchase agreement in December for the former Hitachi building. The contract included a $50,000 refundable deposit and gave the city approximately 45 days to perform its due diligence, including conducting an environmental assessment, developing a detailed financing plan and programming the site to determine the most efficient use of space.

That timeline has since been extended to March, White said.

Located on 53 acres, the former Hitachi building is about 550,390 square feet, with 40,762 square feet of office space and 509,628 square feet of shop or warehouse space. The purchase price for the city would be $10 million. In addition to providing space for Proterra, the city could relocate its Public Works Operations Center to the site.

The idea stemmed from the competition for Proterra’s business. The Colorado-based company had considered sites in Indiana and Ohio and was particularly interested in Ohio.

“I think they had the edge throughout the whole thing,” White said.

At one point in the competition, Ohio offered Proterra startup space, he said.

“So we had to offer startup space,” White added.

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  Proterra to invest $68M, hire 1,300 in Greenville
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Dale Hill, Proterra founder, chairman and chief technology officer, said the company was ultimately lured to Greenville by the potential of CU-ICAR and the excitement expressed by a collaboration of leaders across the state. Representatives from the Greenville Area Development Corp., the South Carolina Department of Commerce and the South Carolina Research Authority joined with Gov. Mark Sanford, Sen. Lindsey Graham, Sen. Jim DeMint, Rep. Bob Inglis, White, Greenville County Council Chairman Butch Kirven, Clemson University President James Barker, and others in recruiting Proterra.

“I’ve lived all over, and I’ve never seen a state come together like this,” Hill said.

Hill, a native of Texas, said he also liked the idea of remaining in the south.

“I’m from the south,” he said. “People understand me here.”

Published Feb. 8, 2010