FedEx said to plan LR truck terminal

Plans for a 305,000-squarefoot distribution warehouse and truck terminal have been submitted to the Little Rock Planning Department.

A source with knowledge of the plan said it is for a Fed-Ex Corp. facility.

The company was noncommittal. It said in an email that “FedEx continuously evaluates opportunities that can enhance our ability to serve our customers but, as a matter of policy, we don’t have further information on specific proposals under consideration.”

The plan does not say the name of the company. However, a letter from White-Daters and Associates, an engineering firm in Little Rock, describes the company as a “large national tenant.”

The letter states that the plan is a revision “due to wetlands that were discovered in the original tract of land” just to the north.

The plan submitted to the city shows about 100 loading docks and parking for hundreds of trailers. The letter requests that the matter go before the Planning Commission at its May 15 meeting. The plan does not include any details about the number of employees, but it does show an employee parking lot with more than 500 spaces.

Saad Development Corp. of Mobile, Ala., is named as the developer.

Saad is a primary developer for FedEx Corp. Its website shows 13 FedEx facilities along the lines of the proposed facility in Little Rock.

Greg Saad, owner of the company, declined to comment about the project.

The site is 44.2 acres south of the Gateway Town Center, which includes the Bass Pro Shops and an outlet mall that is under construction. The center is at the intersection of Interstates 430 and 30. The main entrance to the terminal would be on Mabelvale Cutoff Extension, according to the plans.

Fred Smith founded Fed-Ex in 1971 in Little Rock, but moved it to Memphis two years later after he failed to persuade the Little Rock Airport Commission to expand its runway system.

He likewise was unable to get any major capital investment backing to allow the fledgling company to expand nationwide.

It has done that, and more. FedEx and United Parcel Service are the world’s largest courier delivery services.

FedEx employs 31,500 people in Memphis.

Business, Pages 25 on 04/09/2014

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