A struggling state-funded vehicle research center in Northampton County has caught the attention of U. S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole, R-N.C., as well as Raleigh-based federal criminal investigators. Dole wants $1 million in federal funds for it, while the investigators are apparently interested in the economic development organization that helped facilitate the project.

The project, N.C. Center for Automotive Research (NCCAR), was known until April 2007 as the N.C. Advanced Vehicle Research Center (NCAVRC). NCCAR is organized as a nonprofit, and Northampton County Economic Development Director Gary Brown serves as president.

Lotus Engineering has provided some engineering services but no actual money. Simon Cobb, a former Lotus employee, became NCCCAR Chief Operating Officer in April and remains the only employee.

A groundbreaking ceremony took place in April 2006, but so far there has been no visible construction activity. That is about to change, according to Brown. He said NCCAR recently awarded an $8.4 million contract to PLT Construction in Wilson, and work is scheduled to begin next month.

“It is time, and we are ready to move forward,” Brown said. “We believe demand for the facility has grown as automakers look to outsource research and development to lower costs.”

NCCAR plans to be “an independent, non-profit center devised to meet the ever-evolving product research, testing and development demands of the automotive industry,” according to its Web site. The 625-acre site, located just off Interstate 95 outside Roanoke Rapids, is to include a 4.6-mile test track, advanced laboratory, and client garages.

Dick Dell of Raleigh developed the concept for the research center. He helped sell the project to the General Assembly, which in turn appropriated $15 million. Dell also helped secure a $1 million grant from Golden LEAF, a foundation set up to handle North Carolina’s tobacco settlement funds. Golden LEAF officials told Carolina Journal the grant is on hold because the project has been delayed, but they were having “ongoing discussions” with NCCAR officials.

Dell is no longer associated with the project but continues to do automotive research under the name of AVRC. He told CJ that federal investigators recently approached him to talk about the project and the Northeast Commission. Dell did not want to provide any details of their conversations.

The Northeast Commission, under the direction of then-CEO Rick Watson, was involved in the planning stages of the NCCAR project. The commission is a state-funded regional economic development organization headquartered in Edenton. In 2004 Watson helped locate the facility on Northampton County land owned by O. S. “Buck” Suiter and his relatives. A retired Ahoskie banker, Suiter also serves as a board member on the Northeast Commission, as an appointee of Gov. Mike Easley.

After Northampton County optioned the site for the project in 2004, the commission paid a Raleigh engineering firm to conduct a preliminary environmental assessment. Suiter told CJ that he was unaware that his commission had spent money evaluating the site.

No details from Dole

The project has already received $300,000 in federal funds. Dole announced in July that she requested and expected to secure a $1 million appropriation for the project. In a press release, Dole said that NCCAR would use the funds to equip the Chassis Dynamic Laboratory, a research facility that focuses on fuel efficiency and alternative energy systems.

“To lower gas prices and achieve energy independence we need to invest in innovative technologies that enhance fuel efficiency,” Dole said in the release. “Not only does this project drive economic development and job creation in North Carolina, but it also contributes to America’s energy security.”

When CJ recently asked Dole’s staff for more specifics about the funding, Dole press secretary Wes Climer said, “Numerous state legislators, educational institutions, and economic development organizations requested federal assistance for the Center — because it is designed to spur growth and create jobs locally, as well as advance a clear national need for greater investment in fuel efficiency and alternative energy sources.”

When pressed for more details, he said a bipartisan group of nine legislators supported the project. When asked to name them, he refused, citing the confidential nature of constituent correspondence.

Watson’s growing troubles

The Northeast Commission terminated Watson in 2006 after the State Auditor released a scathing report on the commission’s operations and Watson’s conflicts of interest. Watson’s board had permitted him to work for Randy Parton’s new production company while simultaneously continuing his work as CEO of the commission. Watson initiated the Randy Parton Theatre concept and recruited Parton to North Carolina. At some point in time Watson acquired an ownership interest in Parton’s company, Moonlight Bandit Productions.

Earlier this year Roanoke Rapids city officials asked Parton to leave the theater and renamed it the Roanoke Rapids Theatre. The theater is now closed as city officials search for the right management and entertainment programming to bring in enough money to pay off the $21.5 million loan they borrowed to launch the project.

In February Parton received a subpoena to appear in front of a federal grand jury. Watson has also received a subpoena and has hired Raleigh criminal defense attorney Wade Smith. Grand jury hearings are not public, and CJ has been unable to determine if either Parton or Watson have testified.

Another situation related to Watson drew attention last week. A former state environmental official was sentenced in U.S. District Court to 40 months in prison for his role in an extortion scheme to help a company build an ethanol plant in Beaufort County. 



Boyce A. Hudson, 67, pleaded guilty in May to extortion and money laundering in connection with his efforts to help Agri-Ethanol Products LLC (AEP) obtain environmental permits through the N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources. AEP planned to build an ethanol production plant in Beaufort County, but the project appears to dead, and federal prosecutors could charge others.

A federal subpoena to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources sought documents relating to communications with Watson and others. Watson was involved in helping AEP locate the facility in Beaufort County, and his commission applied for state grants on behalf of the company.

In 2003 Carolina Journal first wrote about corruption allegations involving efforts to launch an ethanol production company in eastern North Carolina. Raleigh businessman William Horton alleged that Watson and others conspired to keep him from building an ethanol plant in Beaufort County. AEP was formed after Horton made his allegations, and the company ended up controlling the same site where Horton had planned to build his plant. 


Carrington is executive editor of Carolina Journal.