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Advance Auto Parts to Bring 500 Jobs to Pennsylvania
NEW SMITHVILLE, Pa. -- Some 500 jobs will be created in Lehigh County with the opening of Advance Auto Parts' first and only northeast distribution center in the spring of 2005, reports David Yeager, director of Gov. Edward G. Rendell's Action Team. The company plans to purchase and expand an existing 500,000 square-foot facility in the Arcadia West Industrial Park in Smithville, Weisenberg Township.The Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development has agreed to provide a financial package totaling $3.225 million that includes $1.5 million in Job Creation Tax Credits, $225,000 in Customized Job Training, $500,000 from the Machinery and Equipment Loan Fund and a $1 million Opportunity Grant, Yeager says. The total cost of this project, including the DCED funds, is $50 million.Headquartered in Roanoke, Va., Advance Auto Parts is a nationwide retailer of automotive parts and accessories. The new distribution center, which will be expanded to 650,000 square feet, will be an important part of Advance Auto's comprehensive distribution network. The 500 new positions available at the facility will include drivers, dispatchers, material handlers, supervisors and managers.The facility is expected to open in the spring of 2005 and is located adjacent to Interstate 78, 10 miles west of Allentown, Pa. With the planned 150,000 square feet addition, the facility will be expanded to approximately 650,000 square feet. Once the expansion is complete, it will be outfitted with the latest systems and equipment."This distribution center is ideally located to serve our growing base of stores in the Northeast," said Larry Castellani, chairman and chief executive officer of Advance Auto Parts. "Although the location played a key role in our decision, the deciding factor was the people of this community. We look forward to offering career opportunities to 500 of them as we ramp-up this world-class facility."The distribution facility was developed through a joint venture between Arcadia Properties LLC, of Bethlehem, Pa., and The Prudential Insurance Co. of America.The company, which began in 1932 as a small chain of home and auto supply stores in Virginia, now operates more than 2,553 stores in 39 states, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.Visit Advance Auto Parts: www.advanceautoparts.com "