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FedEx Ground has moved a major step closer to locating a $100 million package hub and its approximately 260 new jobs in a business park straddling the Forsyth and Guilford county lines.

A spokesman said Friday night that FedEx Ground has purchased about 125 acres in Triad Business Park, but stopped short of announcing that the company would build there.

No date for such an announcement has been set, but spokesman David Westrick said, "We would like to make it as soon as possible."

Westrick said the company purchased the land this week from Samet Corp. , but could not provide a specific date or price.

One county official estimated the price at about $13 million .

"We view the fact that we purchased the land as definitely expressing a strong interest in that site," Westrick said, noting that there are still some zoning issues to be resolved. "We can't begin construction or development until (those) are settled. It is rare that we buy land and don't develop on it, but it does happen."

Westrick said competing sites in Greenville, S.C., and Murfreesboro, Tenn., would not be eliminated "until we are definitely building somewhere."

The location of the 400,000-square-foot hub in Kernersville would be a major economic stimulus for the region, Guilford County leaders said.

"We need jobs," said Linda Shaw , a Guilford County commissioner. "They bought the land from someone locally. They are going to be hiring workers here. They are going to be using construction workers here. I think it will be a big boost for us."

In mid-July the commissioners voted 9-2 to approve an incentives package of $952,500 over three years if the company locates here.

Westrick said the company wants to have a new ground hub operational by 2010. He added that when the facility is at full capacity it could employ between 900 and 1,000 people, but said a majority of those jobs would be transferred from other FedEx Ground sites.

He described the hub - the company currently has 30 around the nation - as a dual operation.

"It sorts packages and sends them out to other hub facilities all over the country," Westrick said. "It also feeds local terminals with pick up and delivery."

The FedEx Ground hub would not be related to the $300 million FedEx sorting facility hub scheduled to open in about a year at Piedmont Triad International Airport.

The two operations would have the same parent company, FedEx Corp.

County officials and economic development leaders stressed that they have received no official notification from FedEx Ground about the company's plans. But for some time they have expressed optimism about the outcome. Even so, they remained publicly cautious Friday night.

"While buying the land is positive news, we can't really celebrate until we get the official word," said Kirk Perkins , chairman of the county commissioners .

"We think they are going to pick a good place if they come here."

Contact Donald W. Patterson at 373-7027 or don.patterson@news-record.com