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Giant Amazon sites in Chesterfield and Dinwiddie now under roofJul 20, 2012 (Richmond Times-Dispatch - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- There's big, and then there's Amazon big. At 1 million square feet, Amazon.com's distribution center in eastern Chesterfield County is big enough to swallow a couple of aircraft carriers and nearly big enough to hold a shopping mall the size of Short Pump Town Center. Construction is ongoing, but the building in Meadowville Technology Park is already under roof just seven months after the Seattle-based online retailer announced plans to open two Richmond-area fulfillment centers. Also under roof is a similar-size warehouse in Dinwiddie County. The online retail giant is spending $135 million to build warehousing and shipping centers in Chesterfield and Dinwiddie counties. Together, the two sites are expected to employ about 1,350 people. "It's hard to imagine that in December, this was a heavily forested area," said Will Davis, Chesterfield's economic development director. Members of the county's economic development authority visited the site Thursday, as construction crews worked inside and outside the building and bulldozers moved around in what will become the parking area for about 1,000 employees. The fulfillment center stretches 1,570 feet long and 600 feet wide and stands 40 feet tall, covering about 23 acres on a 100-acre site. As many as 1,000 people have been working on the construction on any given day. Inside the voluminous building, subcontractors already are installing a series of towering racks for storing the thousands of products that Amazon sells online and ships to customers across the nation. Conveyor systems also are being installed for moving products in and out of the center. The Chesterfield site will handle smaller items, while the Dinwiddie center will store and ship larger products. The Dinwiddie center should open in September, said Tammie Collins, division chief of planning and community development for Dinwiddie. The Chesterfield location should be ready in October, Davis said. Amazon won't provide specific opening dates, but a spokeswoman said the company wants to open the centers in the fall, in time for the holiday shopping season. The spokeswoman said both centers are on schedule to be completed in time. Amazon has been conducting interviews for jobs at the fulfillment centers, including a round that was completed in June, Collins said. Other interviews are scheduled for the end of July and August, with additional seasonal hiring expected in the fall. Amazon is selecting candidates for interviews entirely through an online application process. The company has posted job openings for the two centers on a website, www.workatamazonfulfillment.com. Collins said Dinwiddie County is planning to host an application assistance event for people who would like to apply for jobs but don't have access to a computer. That program has been scheduled for Aug. 8 from 2 to 7 pm at Dinwiddie Middle School. "We're really pleased with the great talent that we're seeing in the state of Virginia," an Amazon spokeswoman said in an email response to questions. Chesterfield officials are hoping to attract more companies to the county-owned Meadowville Technology Park, a 1,300-acre industrial park just off Interstate 295. "We are looking for a certain type of company in here; it is an upscale technology park," Davis said. "It could be technology-related companies, logistics companies or headquarters operations." In June, Capital One Financial Corp. said it will invest more than $150 million to establish a data center in the park. The data center is expected to create at least 50 jobs. [email protected] (804) 775-8123 ___ (c)2012 the Richmond Times-Dispatch (Richmond, Va.) Visit the Richmond Times-Dispatch (Richmond, Va.) at www.timesdispatch.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |