Agricultural company opens new Elk Grove distribution site. What does it mean for local jobs?

If you’ve driven down Grant Line Road in Elk Grove, you’ve probably noticed a gigantic, empty warehouse in recent months.

You might’ve assumed based on its size that it was an Amazon distribution center. Well, it’s not an Amazon site and now, it’s no longer empty.

Kubota Tractor Corp., a Japanese agricultural machinery company with more than 1,100 dealerships across the continent, now has a location in Elk Grove and is expected to jobs to the area.

The company’s Western Distribution Center headquarters is a $70 million, 631,465 square-foot building that sits on 45 acres of previously owned city land on Grant Line Road.

It officially opened its doors for the first time Tuesday. Kubota has five division offices and three distribution centers in the U.S.; the Elk Grove location serves as both.

Division offices are made up of personnel who supports different departments such as finance, support, sales, service parts and distribution of parts or whole goods. The distribution centers receive finished goods and ship them to dealers.

“Today marks a celebration of vision, hard work and community,” Elk Grove mayor Bobbi Singh-Allen said during Kubota’s grand opening Tuesday. “The entire Kubota team and key city staff and departments have dedicated countless hours to bring this project to fruition and we are delighted to share this milestone with each and every one of you. The Kubota, Elk Grove story is one of partnership and perseverance.”

Singh-Allen said there were plenty of criteria Kubota was looking for — and Elk Grove and the Sacramento region met them.

“The project is the result of multi-city and multi-state search by Kubota for the right location and the right community and that community is right here in the great city of Elk Grove,” Singh-Allen said. “When deciding where to put the project, Kubota evaluated key search criteria such as location, cost and talent, all of which Elk Grove and the greater Sacramento region were able to deliver.”

The site is expected to offer sales, services, parts and finance as the site will house tractors, farm equipment, construction equipment and other goods.

It will also provide classes for employees as a part of Kubota University. It contains a large space and a classroom space where technicians and sales personnel come in to provide support through training.

The facility is a part of Elk Grove’s planned 400-acre Grant Line Business Park, according to Singh-Allen, which is expected to employ thousands of people in the area once fully developed. Kubota’s Western Distribution Center is the first of many new projects, she said.

In 2021, The Sacramento Bee reported that Kubota alone could attract as many as 300 jobs to Elk Grove.

Kyle Hagen, director of Kubota’s Western Division, said the size and location of the facility were a good fit for the company which will allow them to flourish.

“You look at the Elk Grove region, the farms and the communities within this Elk Grove region,” Hagen told The Bee on Tuesday. “You drive south, you’ve got agriculture, you drive north, you’ve got agriculture. So I think that’s a big part of it.”

The Elk Grove site replaced its former West regional base in Lodi, a 180,000 square-foot site that Kubota opened in 2005.

Hagen, who has been with the company for 20 years, added: “I think Kubota is also going to be looking to be an employer of choice and we’ve always done that.”

Singh-Allen believes Kubota will prove to be of economic value to Elk Grove.

“The project will generate an economic ripple effect for Elk Grove and the region benefiting our local economy and Kubota’s employees and their families,” Singh-Allen said. “It will attract hundreds of millions of dollars of capital investment to the city and the region, employing thousands of people.”

She said Elk Grove and the Sacramento region are “open for business.”

“We will support innovative and growing companies like Kubota as they seek to bring investment to our city and our great region.”

Shingo Hanada, president of Kubota spoke before a large group Tuesday and expressed his desire to “have a lasting impact on the industry and the communities we serve.”

“We are not just opening the doors, we are opening new possibilities for our company and the communities we serve. From the new offices and the training rooms, to the distribution base of farming and construction… this facility provides a favorable environment for cooperation, creativity and professional growth.”