Nash Finch distribution center will bring 100 more jobs

Monroe County might see more jobs and improved property value during the next few years.

Nash Finch, a Fortune 500 company, announced Oct. 6 the placement of a distribution center in Bloomington.

The vacant building at 311 N. Curry Pike will be bought and refurbished by the company for $10.6 million, according to an Indiana Economic Development Corporation press release.

Nash Finch executives plan to establish their MDV division here in Bloomington, which produces grocery and related products for military stores. MDV is a division of Nash Finch Company, the second-largest publicly traded wholesale food distributor in the United States.

“This new Bloomington distribution center is consistent with our strategy to expand our military business and will serve 11 military commissaries and exchanges across eight states,” said Ed Brunot, president and chief operating officer of the MDV division in a press release.

The new center is also expected to create up to 100 local jobs by 2014, and the company has announced that it will begin hiring immediately.

“We were impressed by their mission and record of community involvement, and we look forward to their success and participation in our community,” Geoff McKim, Monroe County Council president, said in a statement.

Nash Finch was established in North Dakota more than 100 years ago and currently employs 7,500 associates nationally.

The Minnesota-based company boasts annual sales of approximately $5.2 billion.
Area Development magazine recently named Indiana the No. 6 best state in the nation for business and the top state in the Midwest. This was based on a survey of national site selection consultants.

Nash Finch made their decision a few days later.

“Monroe County was very pleased to have an opportunity to compete for Nash Finch’s investment and employment in an empty facility, and we were proud that our talented workforce, strategic location and government support convinced the company that Monroe County was the right choice,” McKim said.

The Indiana Economic Development Corporation, IEDC, offered Nash Finch up to $525,000 in performance-based tax credits based on the company’s job creation plans.

Monroe County has also offered property tax abatement for property improvements at the site.

“We greatly appreciate the efforts of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, Bloomington Economic Development Corporation, the state of Indiana and Monroe County, whose assistance was critical in making this expansion possible,” Brunot said.