PLYMOUTH, N.C. (AP) -- Paving has started to lengthen the runway at the town of Plymouth's airport so it can accommodate executive jets as the eastern North Carolina town tries to attract business.

Mayor Brian Roth said Thursday that trucks loaded with asphalt had arrived to start paving to extend the 3,700-foot runway to 5,500 feet at the municipal airport.

Roth said the town also plans to build additional hangars and a maintenance facility and that there is land available for commercial development.

Plymouth already is home to a pulp and paper mill which Domtar Corp. acquired last year from Weyerhaeuser.

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