Airship Management Services broke ground Wednesday on a new 20,000 square-foot facility, a $500,000 investment that could bring 30 new high-tech jobs to the area within the next four years.

The company’s new site on Weeksville Road will be on land adjacent to TCOM L.P., a related business from whom the airship maker already rents hangar space.

When the new building is complete, likely within the next six months, Airship Management Services will move from its current site on U.S. Highway 17 South, where it has been operating for the past decade.

"Our company’s presence here really is an American story," said Airship Management Services President George A.R. Spyrou. "We’re putting our roots into this community, which has nurtured us for 10 years."

The new building will accommodate all of the company’s needs, Spyrou said, and more than three-fourths of it will be used for engineering workshops and technical support.

"Maintenance, engineering, operations, all of them," Spyrou said. "It’ll be an office and engineering facility. We’ll do design, repair of the existing ships and regular maintenance."

The new facility will allow Airship Management Services to build on its current projects as well, Spyrou said.

"It’s going to allow us to expand our own business, but also to support other airship operations from other parts of the world who want support in the U.S. This will include an Federal Aviation Administration repair station. It allows us, under FAA authority, to do repairs and maintenance of aircraft."Airship Management Services has operated the Fujifilm Skyship 600, the world’s largest passenger airship, for almost 20 years in Japan, Korea, Australia and Europe as well as the United States.

The company expects to expand its current workforce from 30 employees to between 60-80 within three to four years, he added.

The starting salary for ground crew members is $25,000 annually, plus expenses, said Bill Prince, executive director of the Albemarle Economic Development Commission.

"This is an exciting event for us," Prince said. "We’re just thrilled. These are skilled jobs, very technical in nature."

The financial impact on the area may be more than $1 million annually in retail sales and taxes paid to the county, Prince added.

Airship Management Services’ announcement is good news for the entire area, according to Pasquotank County Commissioner Matt Wood.

"Expansion of industry is important to all of us," he said. "It’s jobs, it’s taxes, it makes everything better. I know they’re hiring now, and they’ve had a very large response."

Elizabeth City Mayor Brett Van Nieuwenhuise expected the company’s expansion to create more opportunities for area businesses.

"Every new expansion helps the Economic Development Commission to bring in new business and expansion," he said. "I’m just happy to see them stick with Elizabeth City and Pasquotank County."

The company’s reception during the past 10 years was a factor in its decision to stay in Elizabeth City, Spyrou said.

Facility Under Construction