After initially announcing its arrival to Tallahassee in August with the development of a 630,000-square-foot fulfillment center, Amazon is adding to its local imprint with the purchase of a second lot on the west side of town.
Soon to be located on a 170 -acre plot near Interstate 10 on Mahan Drive, the original fulfillment center is expected to create up to 1,000 full-time jobs starting at $15 an hour, marking the largest economic development in county history, according to the Tallahassee Democrat.
While still held under the confidential name “Project Cyprus,” a city of Tallahassee permit agenda describes the second project as a 123,115 square-foot warehouse facility built on 47.80 acres located behind the Home Depot on Capitol Circle Northwest.
Already one of the largest employers in the country, Amazon is on its way to becoming one of Big Bend’s leading employers with the development of a second facility in Leon County. These expansion efforts, facilitated by a partnership with the Tallahassee-Leon County Office of Economic Vitality, come at a time when local officials seek to attract employers to Tallahassee and entice FAMU, FSU, and TCC students to build careers in town after graduation.
“This is a crucial vote that will truly show the world the Tallahassee we want to become,” Mayor John Dailey told the Tallahassee Democrat. “Are we going to be open for business? Are we truly going to create jobs and add jobs to our local economy, or are we going to be stagnant?”
Amazon’s impact on the Tallahassee economy will be felt far beyond the newly hired Amazon employees or the eager shoppers enticed by shorter delivery times, however.
According to the Blueprint Intergovernmental Agency, a joint city-county agency dedicated to building community infrastructure, the original fulfillment center is projected to generate a total economic impact of $451.1 million with an added 3,602 jobs and $167.6 million in wages. And it is poised to increase with the addition of a second development.
With construction already underway on Mahan Drive and an official announcement for the second location soon to come, Amazon is well on its way to establishing itself in the Tallahassee area and helping the city establish itself as “the Tallahassee it wants to become.”
“Amazon’s presence can create positive long-term impacts to local retailers, gas stations, convenience stores, restaurants, non-profits, and the education community, along with boosting property tax revenue,” said Douglas Ott, a marketing and advertising professor in FAMU’s School of Business & Industry. “It can also provide internship and career opportunities to students from FAMU’s School of Business & Industry and to students from other departments as well.”