With an anticipated deadline looming, construction stalls on Amazon in Pender County
The Pender Commerce Park is bustling with employees, delivery trucks, and even construction workers making way for another business to join the park.
That same construction work hasn't happened yet for Amazon.
In March 2022, Amazon and business officials announced plans to build a delivery station at Pender Commerce Park, but it appears no progress has been made on the selected site. Last year, Wilmington Business Development (WBD) said a 142,000-square-foot facility was anticipated to be complete in 2023 to serve a growing customer base in the area, while providing more than 100 full-time jobs.
According to Pender County records, the site on Acme Way next to Acme Fish remains owned by Amazon Services, LLC and was granted by Pender County. Daniel Adams, planning and community development director, confirmed construction has not started yet.
Earlier this year, Amazon and WBD provided updates about the facility along U.S. 421 amid speculation about if the Pender location would open at all. But officials assured Amazon is still coming.
A previous report from The Daytona Beach News-Journal in 2022 indicated that Amazon was pulling back plans on expanding warehouses and distribution centers. Marc Wulfraat, a global logistics consultant with MWPVL International Inc., provided a list of projects closing, canceled or delayed. For North Carolina under the canceled list, he mentioned a planned delivery station in Wilmington (Pender County is considered part of the city's metro area).
The speculation also included Seefried Industrial Properties, an Atlanta-based industrial real estate business connected to Amazon, backing out of a deal with Pender County. The Golden LEAF Foundation approved a $500,000 grant to demolish old buildings left at the old BASF/Tekada manufacturing facility, which made Vitamin C products for the dietary supplement industry. At the time, it was reported a company, known as "whale," was expecting to bring 1,000 jobs. The 150-acre area is located on Vitamin Drive.
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Previous Coverage: Is Amazon still coming to the Wilmington area amid reports of nationwide cutbacks?
Greg Rios, a spokesperson for Amazon, reported in February that the Wilmington area is still in their plans.
"While we don't have a specific launch date to share right now, once we have a better sense of timing, we'll work to hire more than 100 people at the site," Rios previously stated.
Steve Kelly, another Amazon spokesperson, recently said coming to Pender County is still in their plans. Additional information about a construction timeline was not provided by officials.
Along with providing more jobs, officials said the site will also give opportunities to delivery service partners. Through Amazon, delivery stations such as the one announced for Pender are designed to be the last part of the ordering process after packages are shipped to the facility from other centers.
Along with Amazon, other businesses either operating or soon-to-open at the park include Acme Smoked Fish, Empire Distributors, FedEx Freight, Coastal Beverage, Polyhose and RL Cold. WBD officials also confirmed that Home Depot and Lansing Building Products, a company that produces exterior building materials, are expected to move into a building developed by Ramm Captial Partners LLC.
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Reporter Chase Jordan can be reached at cjjordan@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Construction for Amazon delivery station in Wilmington NC stalls
