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West Frankfort close to landing FedEx Ground Distribution Center

BY BECKY MALKOVICH, THE SOUTHERN

Thursday, June 28, 2007 7:25 AM CDT

WEST FRANKFORT - Dirt on West Frankfort's west side could start turning as early as September if plans for a new FedEx Ground Distribution Center come to fruition.

The new center would replace the company's Marion facility and is part of a $1.8 billion expansion of FedEx Ground, a division of FedEx Corp., company spokesman David Westrick said.

FedEx Ground is growing at a rate of about 10 percent or more a year, Westrick said, creating the need for the company to build or relocate some 300 facilities nationwide. The company delivers about 3 million packages per day nationwide and hopes to up that number to 5 million in the future, Westrick said.

"We are choosing to build a new facility because our existing facility (in Marion) has reached or is nearing its full capacity. We need more room to grow," Westrick said.

While the company has not fully committed to the West Frankfort site, Westrick said, "This is the site we want to develop, but anything is possible until we name a developer, have the bids locked up and all the contracts and legal deals are signed on the dotted line."

Site selectors looked at a number of Southern Illinois locations including West Frankfort, Marion and Johnston City, but the West Frankfort site, located just off Ken Gray Boulevard near the intersection of Interstate 57 and Illinois 149, has cleared a number of hurdles to land as the frontrunner.

"The city of West Frankfort is donating 10 acres of land for the project and all the surveys, soil testing and environmental studies have been done," said Ken Burzynski, executive director of Franklin County Regional Economic Development Corp. "A contract on the property was received from FedEx and has been signed by city officials. Almost anything could go wrong, of course, but it appears everything is in alignment and in place to proceed quickly."

Burzynski said dirt could start turning on the site in September, with the initial 45,000-square-foot building ready to accept equipment by March and open for business next summer.

Few infrastructure improvements would be needed for the site, Burzynski said, although some roads may need to be widened to accommodate the turning radius for FedEx ground trucks.

The new facility could add 40 to 60 jobs to the region, Westrick said.

"These jobs would be in addition to the number of employees already working at the Marion facility and would be added over a period of time. When we talk about employment at a new facility, we talk about what it would be eventually, when the facility is running at its full capacity," he said.

The number of people working at the Marion facility was not available.

Burzynski said he has been working toward securing the facility for the county for close to 11 months.

"A lot of effort has gone into this and a lot of credit needs to go also to the city of West Frankfort and its leaders. We started working on this when (former Mayor) Larry Warren was in office and he and Mayor Marion Presley have been great to work with. I give them a lot of credit. We had great cooperation," Burzynski said.

Gail West, director of economic development for the city of Marion, said the city and the Regional Economic Development Corp. also worked hard to keep the facility in Marion or Williamson County.

And while Marion could lose the facility, West said if the West Frankfort site does land the center, at least FedEx Ground will remain in the area.

"I would prefer that it stay in Marion, but if not, I am glad it's going to stay in Southern Illinois," she said.

Burzynski said he believes the possible relocation of the facility is a good indicator for the county's future.

"Anytime a major name like FedEx wants to come to Franklin County, that's a very positive sign. I think it will send a signal that Franklin County is a good place to locate or build," he said. "We have a number of other projects in the mix right now and hopefully the good news will continue in the next few months."

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