FedEx Ground, the national delivery company, is planning to build a distribution center off Lordship Boulevard in Stratford.
FedEx is set to construct a 225,000-square-foot facility in the town”™s industrial area near Woodend Road, according to a statement from the town’s Department of Economic Development.
- A rendering of the FedEx Ground distribution facility planned for Stratford. Rendering courtesy town of Stratford
David Westrick, a company spokesman, said construction on the new building should be finished by August 2016. It will join an existing facility in Wallingford and some of the 150 employees at that location will relocate to Stratford, the statement said.
Westrick said the site, which is owned by ET Stratford LLC, was chosen because of its proximity to major highways, customers”™ distribution centers and “a strong local community workforce for recruiting employees.” FedEx Ground does not rely on air transportation, so its proximity to Sikorsky Airport is just a coincidence, the statement said.
“The new facility is part of a nationwide network expansion to boost daily package volume capacity and further enhance the speed and service capabilities of the FedEx Ground network,” Westrick said in an email cited by the town. “The network enhancements have resulted in accelerating ground service delivery by one day or more in more than two-thirds of the United States. With these changes, FedEx Ground is faster to more overall locations, including more residential areas, than the competition.”
FedEx Ground has more than 500 distribution facilities across the U.S. and Canada.
Amy Knorr, the town”™s economic development supervisor, said FedEx Ground will get a nine-year tax abatement on the building, though it will still have to pay property taxes.
ET Stratford LLC will pay no building taxes for three years, 30 percent of its taxes in the fourth year, 44 percent in the fifth year, 58 percent in the sixth year, 72 percent in the seventh year, and 86 percent in the eighth year.
ET Stratford LLC bought the land from Stratford Land Development last month. According to the town clerk”™s office, the sale was recorded on May 28 for $19,753,650.
Knorr said the project has received all the necessary zoning, planning and wetlands approvals.
An existing FedEx Express shipping center at 500 Lordship Blvd. will not be affected by the opening of the distribution center.
