Gov. Edwards Announces New Amazon Robotics Facility In Baton Rouge

BATON ROUGE, La. — Today, Gov. John Bel Edwards and Amazon announced the company’s latest robotics fulfillment center in Louisiana, with over 1,000 jobs and a $200 million capital investment coming to Baton Rouge. Located on the former site of Cortana Mall, the facility is being constructed near the intersection of Florida Boulevard and Airline Highway, providing necessary access for Amazon’s logistics operations.

The Amazon robotics fulfillment center in Baton Rouge will include contemporary robotics technology, inventory and shipping operations in a multi-level building with an 820,000-square-foot foundation. The project will create over 1,000 full-time jobs with starting pay of $15 per hour and comprehensive benefits beginning on day one — full medical, vision and dental insurance; and 401(k) savings with a 50 percent company match. The development will generate 800 construction jobs, and Louisiana Economic Development estimates the project will result in an additional 1,139 new indirect jobs, for a total of more than 2,100 permanent new jobs in Louisiana’s Capital Region.

“Louisiana has a long and storied history as a leading state for the shipping and transport of goods,” said Gov. John Bel Edwards. “Today’s announcement by Amazon reveals a new chapter in that history, as Baton Rouge will now be home to a state-of-the-art Amazon Robotics Fulfillment Center. I am proud to welcome this new investment to Louisiana’s Capital Region, and I thank Amazon for its continued investment in our great state – the third such investment in seven months. The new jobs and opportunities created by this project will be a tremendous value to Baton Rouge and the entire state.”

Baton Rouge is strategically located for Amazon to secure its goal of fast delivery to customers in Louisiana and across the Gulf Coast. Construction is already underway for the Baton Rouge facility, with plans to open the site by December 2022. In addition to the robotics fulfillment center, the company also operates an Amazon Delivery Station in Baton Rouge, located off Rieger Road.

“We’re a global business with local roots set firmly in the communities in which we live, work, and play. From the local jobs we bring, to the local people we employ, train and upskill—our business is made up of people from the communities like Baton Rouge,” said Bri Tye, Regional Director of Operations at Amazon. “We’re excited to be growing our operations in the capital city of Louisiana and want to thank the local community and all of the state and local leaders for their support in making this project possible.”

The Amazon robotics fulfillment center in Baton Rouge is tied with the recently announced robotics fulfillment center in Shreveport as the two largest of the eight Amazon facilities operating, announced or under construction in Louisiana. At the new Robotics Facility in Baton Rouge, Amazon employees will pick, pack and ship smaller customer orders, such as books, toys, electronics and other household items alongside the latest in robotics technology.

“For over a generation, Cortana Mall has made immeasurable impacts on the fabric of our community in East Baton Rouge Parish,” said Baton Rouge Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome. “It has served our community as a starting place for our small businesses to grow and thrive, it has employed our residents, and sparked the development of many of our neighborhoods. The area has evolved over time and we are thrilled that Amazon will invest in revitalizing and bringing life to an area that once served as the heart of our community. I am confident that Amazon will bring quality jobs and innovation in AI, logistics and operational management to our city and parish. This investment will set the foundation for a stronger future for all of Baton Rouge. We are grateful, I am grateful, and generations in the future will be grateful for your investment in our Capital City.”

LED and its economic development partners began formal discussions with Amazon about a potential fulfillment center at the former location of Cortana Mall in January 2020. To secure the project, the State of Louisiana offered the company a competitive incentive package that includes the comprehensive workforce solutions of LED FastStart^®, the nation’s No. 1 state workforce training and talent attraction program. To offset site infrastructure costs, Amazon will be eligible for a $5 million performance-based grant payable in two installments during 2022 and 2023.

“This is the one we’ve been waiting for,” said president and CEO Adam Knapp of Baton Rouge Area Chamber. “Amazon’s project is transformational, both for creating a thousand jobs and serving as a model of intentional economic development. It’s been a great team effort of state and local leadership to get this project in place. The blighted Cortana Mall will be reinvented into a modern logistics hub that will catalyze investment in the Florida Boulevard corridor and beyond.”

In 2020, Amazon ranked Louisiana No. 5 among all states for the fastest annual growth among its digital entrepreneur partners. More than 14,500 small and medium-sized businesses in the state participate in Amazon’s fulfillment network and collectively recorded a 49 percent growth in recent year-over-year sales.

The hiring of most employees for Amazon’s Baton Rouge fulfillment center will begin in summer 2022, approximately three months prior to the launch of the facility. To keep up-to-date with career opportunities at Amazon in Baton Rouge, visit https://opportunities.ledfaststart.com/amazonbr.

About LED
Louisiana Economic Development is responsible for strengthening the state’s business environment and creating a more vibrant Louisiana economy. LED cultivates jobs and economic opportunity for the people of Louisiana, and promotes business opportunity for employers of all sizes. In 2020, LED attracted 58 new economic development projects representing 11,600 new jobs, 8,600 retained jobs and $12.7 billion in new capital investment. LED’s Small Business Services team, in conjunction with the Louisiana Small Business Development Center Network, assisted more than 17,500 Louisiana small businesses and entrepreneurs in 2020. For more information, visit OpportunityLouisiana.com.

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