SAUGET, IL—The FedEx Corp. has announced it has agreed to move into a planned $23.5 million ground distribution center here at Sauget Industrial Parkway.
The Jones Development Co., through its subsidiary Sauget FXG LLC, purchased the 32-acre site in April. Jones will develop the site and lease the building to FedEx.
The 181,000-sq.-ft. distribution center is scheduled to open in August 2014. Once fully operational, the new facility will process 10,000 packages an hour, according to the shipping company. The center is part of FedEx Ground’s nationwide network expansion plan, which has added 11 major hubs and expanded or relocated 500 facilities across the United States since 2005. FedEx Ground currently operates 16 facilities in Illinois.
The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity is administering the state’s business investment package for FedEx Ground for the new center. The company will be eligible for tax credits, based on job creation, worth $459,000 spread across 10 years. The tax credits are based on performance and the company is not eligible for them unless it meets its commitment to create new jobs and invest in the community. FedEx will also be eligible for training grants to enhance the quality of its workforce.
“FedEx Ground is thrilled to join the Sauget community, and we’re grateful to Governor Quinn for his support,” said Scott Burns, Fedex Ground regional vice president, in a statement. “The site was selected for its ease of access to major highways, its proximity to customers’ distribution centers, and its strong local workforce for recruiting employees that allows us to continue to provide the world-class service our customers have come to expect.” Sauget, located across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, is very business friendly, and was originally incorporated as a city in the 1920s with the name Monsanto after the company’s local chemical plants.