CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – It’s official: Amazon will build a state-of-the-art fulfillment center in Clarksville.
Gov. Bill Lee, Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe and Amazon officials made the announcement today in a news release.
Amazon’s new facility, previously referred to as Project Alice/William by the Clarksville-Montgomery County Economic Development Council, will be located in Corporate Business Park along Guthrie Highway.
Amazon’s interest in Clarksville was initially reported in March, 2021 in The Nashville Business Journal, which reported that Amazon intended to build a 1,000 job distribution center.
Amazon will create 500 full-time jobs with comprehensive benefits at the new 1 million-square-foot fulfillment center, where employees will pick, pack and ship larger customer items, such as bulk paper goods, sports equipment, patio furniture and larger home goods and electronics.
“It is a privilege to welcome another world-renowned company to our community,” said Montgomery County Mayor Jim Durrett. “The process to bring the Amazon Distribution Center here involved a lot of collaboration with our government partners, existing local industries and the County Commission. Once again Montgomery County stood out because of the amazing people of this community.”
Starting pay at the facility will be more than $15 an hour, plus comprehensive benefits including health, dental, and vision insurance; 401k; and paid parental leave, the release said.
“New corporate investment in our community is welcome news,” said Clarksville Mayor Joe Pitts. “That news is especially welcomed when higher wages and benefits are in the same sentence. These are the key ingredients we need to help raise the standard of living for our families, and I’m excited to see a continuing trend of corporations investing in our community. This is positive proof that Clarksville-Montgomery County remains the number one best place to live.”
The facility is expected to launch in 2022.
Amazon in Tennessee
The Clarksville facility will be Amazon’s 10th fulfillment and sortation center in Tennessee and the fourth to be announced in the past 19 months. In 2020, Amazon committed to creating 1,000 jobs at new facilities in both Memphis and Mt. Juliet and most recently in February 2021, the company announced a new fulfillment center project in Alcoa, tacking on an additional 800 new jobs.
Amazon currently operates fulfillment and sortation centers in Charleston, Chattanooga, Lebanon, Memphis, Murfreesboro and Nashville. The company is in the midst of building Amazon Nashville, a new downtown office that will bring more than 5,000 tech and corporate jobs to Nashville.
Since 2010, Amazon has invested more than $13 billion in Tennessee, including infrastructure and compensation to thousands of its employees in the state. Amazon’s investments in Tennessee contributed an additional $13 billion into the state’s economy, and using methodology developed by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Amazon estimates its investments in the state have created an additional 39,000 indirect jobs on top of the company’s more than 25,000 direct hires in Tennessee.
Over the last five years, TNECD has supported nine economic development projects in Montgomery County, resulting in approximately 2,550 job commitments and $708 million in capital investment.