New Details Emerge About Oak Creek's $200 Million Amazon Plant

OAK CREEK, WI -- Officials in Oak Creek scored a huge development in October 2018,, finalizing a deal to bring a $200 million Amazon fulfillment center to the city with the promise of 1,500 new full-time jobs by the end of 2021.

As the massive structure rises from the ground in Oak Creek, new details have been obtained by the Milwaukee Business Journal regarding the scope of the facility and the tax incentives that were used to lure the company here instead of to Michigan or Ohio.

According to data obtained by the Business Journal, the Wisconsin Economic Development Council gave Amazon $7.5 million incentive package divided into $1 million in incentives to create the 1,500 jobs in Oak Creek, with $6.5 million in tax credits offered for building the facility. Those jobs would pay $33,495 annually.

Data obtained by the publication also stated that the facility would ship a staggering 1 million packages each day.

"Amazon has selected a great location close to I-94 that makes perfect sense for our community from a land use planning standpoint. Amazon will become the City's largest employer and contribute significantly to our tax base, helping the City to continue to keep taxes low and services high for our residents," Oak Creek Mayor Dan Bukiewicz said at the time.

In the agreement between the City and Amazon.com Services, Inc., Amazon committed to investing $100 million in property improvements and $100 million of personal property installed in the facility. In addition, Amazon guaranteed to create a minimum of 1,500 full-time jobs with annual gross wages of $40 million by the end of 2021.

The four-story, 2.6 million square foot structure is currently being constructed in the new Ryan Business Park in the City of Oak Creek, adjacent to the I-94/Ryan Road interchange.

Officials said the Amazon site will be developed and owned by an affiliate of Hillwood Development, LLC, and leased to Amazon. The City of Oak Creek established a new tax increment district for the business park earlier this year.

As part of a tax increment package, Hillwood will fund infrastructure costs, estimated at $13.4 million, mostly related to rebuilding the intersection of 13th Street and Highway V, as well as improvements to Ryan Road.

Officials said Oak Creek would refund Hillwood for roadway and utility costs, and up to $3.5 million of reimbursable costs to ready the site for development, through new property taxes collected from the development.

"From the City's perspective, being in a position where we did not have to borrow for these infrastructure upgrades was the most important factor in the Council's decision to move forward. The deal structure is a reimbursement model, with the infrastructure costs being reimbursed only through taxes generated by the Amazon site, not the general taxpayers of the City," City Administrator, Andrew J. Vickers said in a statement at the time.