A Record Year for Bartlett Arlington Inventor's Hot Idea
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March 1-7, 2019, Vol. 12, Issue 9 Chris Tutor, new chairman of the Republican Party of FedEx aims to disrupt growing local delivery market with Shelby County, vows 'big tent' local rebuilding effort. P. 3 SameDay Bot, sheduled to test in Memphis this year. P. 7 FORMERLY THE MEMPHIS NEWS FAYETTE • TIPTON • MADISON Grayson and Easton Ennis, the sons of JNJ Express CEO John Ennis Jr., play in the cab of one of their father’s trucks under the watchful eye of employee Lester Lawson. The transportation company, founded in Memphis 27 years ago, is moving its headquarters, operations center, vehicle maintenance facility and cross dock to Parkway Village shopping center. (Patrick Lantrip/The West Tennessee News) 'PEDAL TO THE METAL' JNJ Logistics' investment in a new Memphis headquarters is part of what Tenn. Gov. Bill Lee calls a vitally important 'accelerated transformation' in the local economic development landscape. P. 2 ARLINGTON A RECORD YEAR INVENTOR'S FOR BARTLETT HOT IDEA Large projects, spike in retail John Antignane's LidGrabber lead to $165M in capital is a success locally and investments for 2018 P. 5 internationally P. 8 A Publication of The Daily News Publishing Co. 2 March 1-7, 2019 The West Tennessee News 'PEDAL TO THE METAL' Square, he learned later. "We just felt like this was a perfect fit for us," he said, citing both the Perkins and Mount Moriah access to the interstate. The company will be buying some new trucks with the move and expansion, En- nis added. Other incentives anticipated for the project include New Market Tax Credits for the development in an area considered economically distressed. State incentives will probably come through the Department of Economic and Community Development's FastTrack pro- gram, and goes to the state funding board next week. "The accelerated transformation of Memphis is vitally important," Lee said Tuesday at the announcement. The PILOT terms call for the employ- ees to be paid an average of $65,410 a year, not including benefits. State Economic and Community De- velopment Commissioner Bob Rolfe de- scribed the jobs being created as "family- wage jobs." The median household income in Memphis is under $40,000 a year. When FedEx Logistics announced it was moving its headquarters from East Memphis to the former Gibson Guitar Tennessee governor Bill Lee was greeted on Feb. 26 by an envoy of local law enforcement officers when he returned to Memphis for a factory Downtown two weeks ago, Rolfe second time in as many weeks for an economic development announcement. (Patrick Lantrip/The West Tennessee News) indicated the pipeline of business invest- ments for Memphis was deep. "We're going to keep the pedal to the 'The accelerated transformation of Memphis is vitally important.' metal" in economic development, Mem- phis Mayor Jim Strickland said at the event Tuesday. Tenn. Gov. Bill Lee visits the city for formal announcment that JNJ joins TAG in locating to an area that was once a retail mecca anchored by JNJ Logistics will build new HQ at Parkway Village the Mall of Memphis at the Perkins Road exit of Interstate 240. TAG's $30 million truck center that opened in late 2017 on BILL DRIES to a vacant Parkway Village shopping cen- The $20.5 million investment includes the mall site. The West Tennessee News ter from its current facility at 3935 Old a renovation of the existing shopping cen- The developers of that project used For the second time in two weeks, Getwell Road. ter and new construction on the 23.23- New Market Tax Credits. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee was in Memphis The Tuesday luncheon and ground- acre site. “It is exciting to see high-quality, Tuesday to announce an economic de- breaking at the old Delta Square shop- John Ennis Jr., CEO of JNJ Express, said high-wage jobs in the logistics industry velopment project employing hundreds ping center, 5050 American Way, marks new construction on the site would be the moving to Shelby County,” Shelby County of Memphians – this time, the start of a project that, like truck maintenance facility. The headquar- Mayor Lee Harris said. “The state and our a new $20.5 million head- the Feb. 13 announcement of ters will be in the center part of the old new governor are really on a roll in terms quarters, operations center, the new FedEx Logistics head- shopping center. of new business recruitment. Further- vehicle maintenance facility quarters Downtown, involves "It's huge not only for the community, more, to have a significant investment and cross dock for JNJ Logis- an existing Memphis business but for our business from a recruiting and in Southeast Memphis is a win for that tics LLC. relocating and expanding a retention standpoint. In our industry community.” Information from the within the city's borders. right now, drivers are hard to come by," The Mall of Memphis was demolished announcement Tuesday re- The pledge JNJ made in Ennis said. "And with us having the vis- in 2004. It was 11 years later that Hunting- vealed JNJ will invest a to- receiving a 15-year Expansion ibility from (Interstate) 240 that's going ton Industrial Partners and Johnson De- tal of $83.6 million over five PILOT – payment in lieu of to be huge. We designed this new facility velopment bought the land and planned years and create 610 new jobs. The total taxes – from the Economic Development around our employees. The amenities we a $112 million speculative industrial park is more than outlined in a tax incentive Growth Engine of Memphis and Shelby are going to have, that's good for our ex- there. Their move for a PILOT from EDGE package the company received about eight County last July was to create 222 jobs and isting employees, but we feel that also it is drew opposition from other developers months ago. retain 290 more. going to be something that's an attraction." who objected to what would have been The transportation company — found- The PILOT amounts to a $5.8 million Ennis said JNJ had been looking at the a precedent in terms of incentives for a ed in Memphis 27 years ago and operating tax break for JNJ, which will pay a project- Mall of Memphis property nearby and that speculative development. When EDGE in 48 states with shuttling, brokerage and ed $35.5 million in local tax revenues over TAG Truck Center, which eventually took delayed its decision on the incentives, the just-in-time delivery services — is moving the 15-year term. over the mall site, was looking at Delta group sold the property to TAG. Logistics makes a comeback in economic development boom BILL DRIES bid to create good-paying jobs. evidence. outlined in July when EDGE The new numbers an- The West Tennessee News The announcement Tues- The announcement that – Memphis and Shelby Coun- nounced Tuesday by JNJ are an Logistics has been making day that JNJ Logistics will ex- drew elected dignitaries and ty Economic Development $83.6 million investment that a comeback recently after some pand its operations and move executives of the city’s truck- Growth Engine – granted a 15- includes some new trucks and have questioned whether the its headquarters from Old ing and logistics industry to a year tax incentive for a $20.5 610 new jobs over five years. mainstay of the Memphis econ- Getwell Road to the vacant tent on the overgrown parking million investment to retain A week earlier, the Memphis omy needs incentives or extra Delta Square shopping center lot of Delta Square was bigger 290 jobs and create 222 new attention in the city’s ongoing in Parkway Village is the latest than the jobs and investment ones. JNJ continued on P3 The West Tennessee News March 1-7, 2019 3 Tutor vows 'big tent' local Republican Party rebuilding effort BILL DRIES it works, because it fosters the common The West Tennessee News good and it contributes to human flour- With no opposition at a convention ishing,” he said. “The alternative, leftism, Sunday of Shelby County Republicans, does not work. It is intellectually and mor- attorney Chris Tutor was elected chair- ally bankrupt.” man of a party he and outgoing chair- More specifically, Tutor defined the man Lee Mills admitted has “a hard road local party’s values as anti-abortion and in front of us.” anti-same sex marriage as part of a broad- Tutor told a group of 160 delegates at er platform. Arlington High School that he is “realis- “We believe that every person is made Tim Beacham (left) and Justin Joy confer during the Republican Party of Shelby County tic about it but not pessimistic” about the in the image and likeness of almighty God 2019 convention at Arlington High School. (Brandon Dill/Special to The West Tennessee News) local party’s fortunes after local Demo- and that life is sacred from conception crats swept every countywide office on to natural death. We believe in families the August 2018 election ballot and had a with a mother and a father. We believe in target Republican voters. … In the end, you was Covington businessman Paul Rose, net gain of one seat on the Shelby County a vigorous national defense. We believe in know the outcome – Republicans were the Republican nominee in the special Commission for an eight-vote majority. strong borders,” he said. “We believe that satisfied and they stayed home.” election for state Senate District 32 that is “They are energized. They are orga- a citizen has the natural right to defend Mills has said several times before and in the early voting period through March nized and they are better funded than at himself, his family and his neighbor – that after the Democratic sweep of countywide 7 with a March 12 election day in eastern any other time in recent memory,” Tutor taxes and regulation should encourage offices in 2018 that local Democrats were Shelby County and all of Tipton County.