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New Amazon Fulfillment Center Opens in Akron

Amazon opened its Akron fulfillment center at the former Rolling Acres Mall site.
Amazon
Amazon has opened its Akron fulfillment center at the former Rolling Acres Mall site.

Amazon’s 640,000-square-foot fulfillment center is now officially open in Akron at the former Rolling Acres Mall site.

Construction started last year. The project is expected to create around 1,500 new full time jobs.

While Amazon wouldn’t comment on the specific number, the company did say it plans on hiring hundreds more workers in the future.

Akron Mayor Dan Horrigan has touted the project’s job creation and the $15 hourly starting wage for full-time workers.

While the COVID-19 pandemic has hit industry across the region hard, Amazon has seen a surge in consumer demand, with sales up 34% in its most recent quarter.

Since 2010 the company has built eight fulfillment centers across the state, including another 640,000-square-foot facility outside of Toledo. In all, the company says it’s invested nearly $6 billion in Ohio.

Mark Arehart joined the award-winning WKSU news team as its arts/culture reporter in 2017. Before coming to Northeast Ohio, Arehart hosted Morning Edition and covered the arts scene for Delaware Public Media. He previously worked for KNKX in Seattle, Kansas Public Radio, and KYUK in Bethel, Alaska.