Costco breaks ground on $300M facility expected to have $1B+ economic impact (800 jobs in Nebraska)

Nebraska Radio Network ^ | June 19, 2017 | Brent Martin

[2ndDivisionVet]

Costco has broken ground on a $300 million chicken processing plant near Fremont, expected to generate more than a billion dollars in economic activity in Nebraska.

Jonathan Luz of Costco said during groundbreaking ceremonies today that a lot of work has been put into the planning stages for the plant, but more work remains.

“As much as it’s an achievement to be here today marking this auspicious occasion, the work really has just begun,” according to Luz. “It’s now time to put the vision that we all share into action and results.”

The poultry processing plant, hatchery, and feed mill should open in the spring of 2019. It will employ 800 and process two million chickens a week from 120 Nebraska producers for Costco stores throughout the country.

Gov. Pete Ricketts thanked Costco executives for their $300 million investment in the state.

“We believe that this will have a $1.2 billion economic impact on the state every year,” Ricketts state. “And to put that into perspective, that’s about 1% of our overall state economy.”

Officially called Lincoln Premium Poultry, the plant will create a ripple effect to create other jobs, according to Ricketts, who says it will add value to agricultural operations in eastern Nebraska. It is the first such facility Costco has built.

[GnuThere]

That sounds great. Is it 800 Nebraskan jobs, or 800 Somali jobs?
(See: Tyson Foods)

[kaktuskid]

All illegal aliens

[BBell]

I lived in Fremont in the past. Not the biggest fans of outsiders they are.

http://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-nebraska-immigrants-20140507-story.html

http://latinousa.org/2014/06/06/fremont-immigrants-not-welcome/

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/22/us/22fremont.html

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/12/us/nebraska-city-votes-to-keep-rule-aimed-at-illegal-immigrants.html

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/06/22/nebraska.immigration/index.html

https://www.yahoo.com/news/nebraska-city-keep-illegal-immigration-rules-122828046.html

BTW, I was an outsider and I am a euro-american. You had to be be in the "the in crowd" back then to work at McDonalds. Very strong work ethics then but that was 35 plus years ago so I do not know what it's like now.

[son of terrence]

Why wouldn’t they build this in New Hampshire or Vermont. They could transport to the entire northeast easier, cheap land and abundant labor.

[Deplorable American1776]

Interesting... I hope it is Nebraskans that’ll be employed.

[krug]

Yep, probably illegals. Fremont did put up a fight, and with knowledge that a good small town American community would turn into a version of the third world.