Amazon Will Open 5th Distribution Center In Georgia

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On Tuesday, Amazon annnounced it will open a new fulfillment center in Macon. Pictured, a fulfillment center in Shakopee, Minnesota. / Flickr/CC

Amazon is opening its fifth fulfillment center in Georgia. Five hundred people will work at the facility in Macon. And Amazon will hire another 500 for the busy holiday shopping season

The deal, dubbed “Project Unicorn,” was rumored for months. But Macon Mayor Robert Reichert said it took a $1.5 million grant from the governor’s office for road improvements to seal it. He says Macon is a popular spot for distribution centers.

“It’s conveniently located in the Southeast with the Savannah International Port only 160 miles east of Macon-Bibb County. We’re also located on this International Commerce Corridor so that we’re only 85 miles south of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, ” Reichert said.

Amazon's vice president of North America customer fulfillment, Sanjay Shah, says the jobs will come with competitive pay and benefits.

Gov. Nathan Deal says suppliers can reach 80 percent of the U.S. population from Georgia in a two-day truck drive or two-hour flight.

Reichert said construction on the one-million-square-foot facility is expected to start within the next 90 days.

Georgia has also entered a bid for the site of Amazon's second headquarters, expected to bring 50,000 jobs.