Mason City made the announcement last Friday, April 19, that they will soon be the home of a new Amazon distribution center. It’s centralized location will help the retail giant provide better and faster service to its north Iowa customers.
The development team for the retail giant, Amazon, has been working with the North Iowa Corridor Economic Development Corporation and the City of Mason City to identify and secure the project site for their new “last mile” 50,000 square foot facility, which will be located near the Avenue of the Saints/Highway 18.
“We’re grateful for our partnership with Mason City and Cerro Gordo County as this last-mile facility will allow us to better serve our customers in North Iowa,” said Jason Vangalis, economic development manager for Amazon. “We look forward to continue working with North Iowa Corridor EDC to launch Amazon’s first facility in the area and sharing more details in the future.”
“It has been great working with Seefried Industrial Properties and the Amazon development team to locate this project in Mason City,” said Chad Schreck, President and CEO of the North Iowa Corridor. “Amazon’s investment exemplifies Mason City’s important role as a regional hub for industry and logistics across North Iowa, and we are excited to continue to build on the momentum.
“Anytime you have a major national, international company like Amazon that selects your community, it’s a great thing economically,” Schreck said. “They’ll be bringing in things from their larger distribution facilities, that’ll go out here direct to home, so at some point we may have same day delivery.”
“The establishment of Amazon’s distribution center in Mason City presents a unique opportunity for job creation, economic growth, and increased access to goods and services for our residents,” says Mason City Mayor Bill Schickel. “We must also carefully consider the potential impact on local businesses and infrastructure as we navigate this exciting new chapter in our city’s development.”
According to a press release the facility will help power the Amazon fulfillment process. Packages are transported to delivery stations from Amazon fulfillment and sorting centers and local employees will process customer packages for delivery. Amazon says it has created more than 4,500 full- and part-time jobs in Iowa since 2010 and invested more than $1.5 billion across the state, including infrastructure and employee compensation. These investments have contributed an additional $1.3 billion to the Iowa economy and have helped create more than 6,200 indirect jobs on top of Amazon’s direct hires—from jobs in construction and logistics to professional services.
Groundbreaking will take place sometime in the next month, with construction expected to take a year before the facility is finally up and running.
