Early drawings for the warehouse that is expected to house a new Pepsi warehouse in Claymont
CLAYMONT — Pepsi plans to ask the Council on Development Finance for nearly $2.9M in grant funding to “Pepsify” a 359,000-square-foot warehouse as part of the multi-use First State Crossing development at the site of the former Evraz Claymont Steel plant, according to documents obtained from the state following a Freedom of Information Act request.
The application says PepsiCo Beverage Sales, the wholly-owned subsidiary of PepsiCo Inc., needs to expand its warehousing operations in Delaware to serve customers in the Northeast United States. It has outgrown its current facility on Governor Printz Boulevard. The new warehouse will be across Philadelphia Pike from the new train station in Claymont.
The $2,887,000 in grant financing includes a Capex grant of $1.86M (representing 3 percent of the $62 million in capital expenditures). It also includes a $1,027,000 performance/retention grant tied to retaining all 216 existing Delaware-based employees and moving them to the new warehouse at 4145 Philadelphia Pike next year and adding 77 net new jobs from its existing Pennsylvania and New Jersey locations for a total of 293 jobs by 2027.
The Council’s next meeting, when this proposal is expected to be considered, will be Dec. 9. The company has until Dec. 2, the day the agenda is posted, to make changes, but that rarely happens because it can result in the discussion being pushed back to a later meeting, said Division of Small Business spokesperson Andrea Wojcik.
The company’s application says average annual salaries are approximately $72,000 per year for warehouse loaders, drivers, merchandisers, sales representatives, and managers.
The Delaware Prosperity Partnership, which appears to be the organization shepherding the proposal through DEDA, declined comment, saying it doesn’t comment on things like this until “it’s done.” The Claymont Renaissance Development Corporation also declined comment.
The First State Crossing project in Claymont has been in development for years as state and local officials have sought to turn the former steel mill into a multi-use project that will attract jobs and residents.
The state itself has become a magnet for millions of square feet of warehousing given the proximity of feeder roads and rail systems.
First Industrial Realty Trust, a top publicly traded real estate investment trust, owns the 28-acre parcel of land and built the warehouse as part of its plan for First State Crossing that once included 3.75 million square feet of new construction as well as plans for mixed-use that would tie into the now-open Claymont Train Station.
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