Huge Amazon site coming to Montgomery County: Your questions answered

Competition for workers in the increasingly crowded concentration of logistics and distribution companies near Dayton International Airport is already pushing wages up, local business leaders said.

Now, with e-commerce giant Amazon announcing plans last week to build a 630,000-square-foot fulfillment center in Union — an operation that Amazon says will employ 1,500 workers making a starting wage of $15 an hour — the stage is set for that competition to only sharpen.

Dayton Daily News reporters last week asked more questions about the coming Amazon site and what it means for jobs in the Dayton region — and for an already busy area. Consider joining efforts to produce quality local journalism like these recent investigations with a Dayton Daily News subscription.

Your questions answered on the Amazon facility:

Where will it be?

The new Amazon center will be across Union Airpark Boulevard from Procter & Gamble’s seven-year-old distribution operation, north of one of footwear company Crocs’ distribution sites. Crocs is building a third warehouse for its operation, after enjoying a strong year in 2020.

What else has been happening in that area?

As of two years ago, deft real estate moves around the airport had led to the development of five logistics buildings totaling more than 2.7 million square feet and employing then more than 2,270 people — a massive $92.3 million in capital investment at that point. Those numbers have only risen.

What are the concerns?

Dan Wendt, city manager for Vandalia, welcomes the new jobs but sees challenges in Amazon’s plans.

“This development and other planned logistics centers to the west of the airport negatively impact Vandalia in a way that no other community in the region is currently affected,” he said in an email. “The increased truck traffic could lead to real safety concerns with regard to collisions, as well as, increased congestion, noise, and wear-and-tear ... on infrastructure.”

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