Cincinnati-based Merus has picked up a Johnston County site for an 80,000-square-foot industrial building, adding another sizable development play to a region where warehouse and manufacturing projects keep stacking up. The deal puts a Midwest developer back in the Triangle spotlight as Johnston County works to turn its highway access and available land into more industrial investment.
According to Triangle Business Journal, Merus snagged the North Carolina site and is planning the building as its latest Triangle-area industrial project. Public details available Wednesday do not yet include an announced tenant, construction schedule or projected job count.
Merus is the new name for Al. Neyer, which rebranded in 2025. The company says it has offices in Cincinnati, Raleigh, Nashville and Pittsburgh, and its portfolio includes industrial, medical-office, mixed-use and multifamily projects across the eastern United States, according to Merus.
Johnston County Keeps Chasing Industrial Momentum
This is not Merus’ first Johnston County industrial bet. The company’s Brogden Road Industrial project in Smithfield delivered a 264,800-square-foot building at the end of 2023, with access to the I-40 and I-95 corridors, the developer says in its project profile.
The county has been openly trying to build more ready-to-use industrial space. JoCo Report previously reported that Merus’ Smithfield building was fully leased and that Johnston County officials had been unable to respond to dozens of site-selection inquiries because the county lacked buildings that matched prospective users’ specifications.
Other developers are moving in the same direction. Bisnow reported in June that Prologis bought 28 acres near Interstate 40 with plans for two industrial buildings, while the Town of Clayton has highlighted a separate 346,400-square-foot industrial campus that broke ground earlier this year.
At 80,000 square feet, Merus’ new project would be smaller than those large campuses but could offer the kind of mid-sized space that manufacturers, distributors and logistics companies often need before committing to a much larger footprint. For now, the site acquisition is an early signal rather than a finished deal for local workers or tenants, with the next meaningful details likely to come through planning filings, construction announcements or a lease disclosure.
