A company plans to hire 250 people in the next three years to work at its new facility in Tarboro that will be producing garments for the military.

The New Jersey-based Jade Apparel is planning a $2 million renovation to the Glenoit Fabrics facility at 3001 N. Main St. in Tarboro.

The 300,000-square-foot building will be divided to make way for the new business, which will manufacture military parkas, trousers, jackets, pants, combat shirts and various field garments.

Prior to 2005, Glenoit Fabrics had employed more than 120 people at the Tarboro plant. That force was scaled back significantly after the company was sold to Chinese interests.

Jade Apparel will be buying fabric produced by Glenoit Fabrics. Glenoit Fabrics is leasing out building space to Jade Apparel.

It’s a reciprocal agreement that benefits both companies, officials said.

“We look forward to our new home in Tarboro,” a Jade Apparel spokesperson said in a press release. “Glenoit and Jade Apparel have a long history of cooperation and friendship.”

The press release also states that Jade Apparel will be able to cut down on transportation time and costs by being close to the fabric source.

In January 2006, The Carolinas Gateway Partnership announced that Glenoit IIG Corp. had contracted Tarboro Textiles LLC to manage production operations for the Glenoit Fabrics HG Corp.’s facility. Tarboro Textiles LLC is owned and operated by former Glenoit Fabrics employee Jerry Howard.

The plant currently employs about 39 people.

John R. Gessaman president and CEO of the partnership, said he was excited about the new jobs coming to Tarboro. The partnership, a private-public industrial recruitment agengy, assisted Jade Apparel in applying for state grants for the project.

“We worked very hard (recruiting industries) through some of the worst economic conditions we’ve seen in our lifetime, yet the basic positive of our area remains the same — good labor supply, good training for our labor and an excellent business climate,” Gessaman said.