Ogden to get distribution facility

U.S. Foodservice Inc.'s Salt Lake City Division will break ground next week on a new 260,000-square-foot distribution facility in Ogden.

The announcement was made Thursday by Ogden Mayor Matthew Godfrey.

The facility will be on 37 acres east of Autoliv ASP, at the intersection of Interstate 15 and Hinckley Drive.

The company announced Oct. 15 it would invest $100 million in capital projects to expand its operations, including the building of the new facility in Ogden.

The company said the Ogden site will initially employ about 300 people and will replace its Clearfield facility, with distribution expected to begin in late 2008.

Godfrey said the $30 million facility will feature 30,000 square feet of office space and 230,000 square feet for warehousing. The warehouse will include 20 refrigerated and 14 dry loading docks and parking for up to 50 tractor-trailers. The facility has been designed to accommodate future expansion up to 500,000 square feet.

"We are very excited and pleased to welcome U.S. Foodservice Inc. to the Ogden community," Godfrey said in a prepared statement. "They are a recognized leader in their industry, and we are proud that they have selected Ogden for this significant expansion."

U.S. Foodservice was approved for an economic development incentive of up to $2 million in July 2006. Half of that amount was in an Industrial Assistance Fund cash grant conditioned on the company acquiring property and completing a new building. The remainder is in the form of a tax rebate over a 10-year period. At the time, state officials said the new jobs would pay more than $41,000, or 92 percent above the Weber County median.

U.S. Foodservice has more than 27,000 employees and more than 70 distribution centers across the country. It also plans to expand facilities in Boca Raton, Fla., and Plymouth, Minn. Other projects under way are in Oklahoma City and Las Vegas.