Lowe’s Home Improvement announced this week plans to construct a 1.2 million-square-foot facility in Bessemer, adding 150 jobs and investing over $61 million.
The facility will be located next to Carvana on Morgan Road on 98 acres of property currently owned by U.S. Steel. Lowe’s will contract with developer Clayco to construct and lease back the facility, which will house bulk items for distribution like refrigerators and water heaters and will provide stock space for 112 stores throughout the Southeastern region.
“We are extremely excited that Lowe’s Companies, Inc. has decided to increase its footprint in the Southeastern United States by locating here in Bessemer,” said Bessemer Mayor Kenneth Gulley. “This is the latest in our efforts to position Bessemer as an economic powerhouse for manufacturing and industrial development in this county, state and region.”
The Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA) worked on the project that brought Lowe’s to Bessemer.
“This project shows resiliency in our local economy in that something this large has landed at a very critical time for both jobs and capital investment across the nation,” said Brian Jennings, vice president of economic development at the BBA. “This project provides access to jobs for the residents of Bessemer and may help backfill some displaced jobs as a result of COVID-19. It is a testament to the pro-business environment in Bessemer and the transportation structure within the Birmingham region.”
The bulk distribution facility will allow Lowe’s to provide quicker deliveries to customers across Alabama and the Southeast and will allow for next-day deliveries for a larger range of products housed within the facility.
“This project promotes Bessemer to a national audience as a place where e-commerce and distribution and logistics companies can thrive,” said Jeff Traywick, vice president of economic development at the BBA. “Lowe’s is a great corporate partner and joins a stellar roster of other distributors on the Lakeshore corridor like Amazon, Carvana, Dollar General and FedEx.”
Shipments from the facility are expected to begin by fall 2021.