If Amazon chooses Greenwood for a new packaging center, the online retailer would pay for road improvements near the facility on the southeast side of the city.
The company announced Monday it is considering opening a “receive center” in a 615,000-square-foot facility on Allen Road, near Interstate 65 and Worthsville Road.
With more than 1,000 workers and shipping trucks coming and going from the facility, the traffic impact would be significant.
Projects to accommodate the increased traffic would include widening Graham and Collins roads and adding turn lanes and passing blisters along Allen Road. The company would also pay to have a new road built, which would run east and west and connect Graham and Collins roads.
“These are all being paid for by Amazon, by our developer. These are all costs that Amazon is taking on that the city will not need to reimburse us for,” Amazon’s Economic Development Manager Ryan Wilson said.
Greenwood Mayor Mark Myers appreciates the offer, but worries the other city competing to land the facility might be willing to pay for road projects in an effort to be more appealing to the company, he said. Greenwood is a finalist for this facility.
“That other community could offer them a better deal. Amazon is willing to pay the price to do the infrastructure improvements around here. Maybe somebody else is offering to put the infrastructure in for them and save them some money,” Myers said.
“There are a lot of variables. But again, I have to look at what the salaries are, what the benefits are, what the cost is, and try to balance all of that out. So we were able to talk them into paying for a lot of those improvements.”
