Blount International Inc., an outdoor equipment manufacturer, will be the KCI Intermodal BusinessCentre’s first tenant, bringing a 350,000-square-foot distribution center that will create 89 jobs in Kansas City.
Blount International, based in Portland, Ore., has begun construction on its new $17 million facility, which is due to open in January 2012, according to Clarion Partners and Trammell Crow Co.
The Class A distribution center will be built on 22 acres at KCI. Besides adding new jobs, the project will keep 230 current Blount employees in the region.
KCI Intermodal BusinessCentre is an 800-acre master-planned business park on the Kansas City International Airport campus. The total value of the development, when completed, is expected to top $216 million.
The state is providing an economic incentive package worth $1.24 million, to be redeemed during the next seven years if Blount meets certain requirements.
“Several years ago, the Aviation Department embarked on an ambitious plan to spur aviation- and non-aviation-related development at KCI Airport to attract greater numbers of well-paying jobs to the area,” Mark VanLoh, director of the Aviation Department, said in a release. “Securing Blount as the first tenant at KCI Intermodal BusinessCentre shows that the plan works and we can bring diverse jobs to the area.”
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon said in a release that the state “will continue to fight every single day for every single job to keep our economy moving, and adding 89 solid manufacturing jobs to the local economy is a significant step forward.”
Nixon attended an official groundbreaking for the project—two days after the announcement that Missouri lawmakers would convene a special session to revamp economic development policies to better attract and retain businesses.