New retail warehouse facility to be built in El Paso, create 950 jobs
UPDATE: City and county officials held a news conference Monday morning to officially announce plans for the Marmaxx Operating Corp. warehouse facility, to be built near El Paso International Airport and employ 950 workers, following the deal's unanimous approval by City Council.
ORIGINAL REPORT, Oct. 1: EL PASO, Texas -- The City of El Paso is considering a proposal that would offer nearly $9 million in financial incentives to a global firm looking to build a retail distribution center creating almost 1,000 new jobs that would pay at least $12.50 per hour.
That's according to documents prepared for review by City Council, which will take up the proposal next week.
Marmaxx Operating Corp. is looking to build what would ultimately be a two million-square-foot facility in El Paso to house a new warehouse, offices and distribution operation.
Marmaxx operates roughly 2,400 discount department stores nationwide, most notably the TJ Maxx and Marshalls chains, with 270,000 employees.
Most of the city's incentives package to lure Marmaxx would consist of property tax breaks over a 15-year period. The proposal starts with 100% of taxes waived, gradually decreasing to a 25% tax rebate over the life of the deal.
According to city documents, the company plans a decades-long lease of currently undeveloped land near the El Paso International Airport at a cost of $600,000 a year. Marmaxx will spend $90 million to construct the distribution facility and an additional $60 million on machinery and equipment for it.
Of the 950 full-time workers that would be hired under the firm's agreement with the city, 150 of those positions will pay a minimum average wage of $32 an hour and the other 800 jobs will pay an average wage of no less than $12.50 an hour.
Marmaxx estimates a total annual payroll of $31 million in El Paso and it would be required under the deal to maintain those employment levels in order to receive the city incentives.
