Amazon projects in Daytona, Deltona are almost complete. When will they open?

DAYTONA BEACH — Construction is nearing completion on two massive new Amazon distribution centers in Volusia County that are expected to create a combined 2,000 new jobs.

The question is when?

When the e-commerce giant first announced these projects, both the 2.8 million-square-foot robotic fulfillment center in Daytona Beach and the nearly 1 million-square-foot “before-the-first-mile” center in Deltona were set to open in 2024.

Yet when Amazon issued a press release on Aug. 14 announcing plans to open four distribution centers in Florida this year, it made no mention of either Daytona Beach or Deltona.

Instead, Amazon listed a 1.1 million-square-foot last-mile delivery center in Port St. Lucie, which opened the same day, as well as three smaller last-mile delivery stations that will open soon in Melbourne, Jacksonville and Tampa.

An Amazon spokesperson told The Daytona Beach News-Journal that both new facilities in Daytona Beach and Deltona remain in the company’s plans. He declined to say whether they are still on track to open this year.

Pay attention to this warning sign

“Hiring for hourly employees typically does not begin until 30 to 60 days prior to facility launch,” Amazon spokesman Greg Rios wrote in an Aug. 26 email. He confirmed that hiring for the robotics fulfillment center at 2519 Bellevue Ave. in Daytona Beach has not yet begun.

This means that the earliest that recruitment begins on August 30 will be in October.

Rios did not comment on employment at the 984,960-square-foot building at 2501 N. Normandy Blvd. in Deltona.

The latter is part of the new I-4 Logistics Park, across the street from the 1.4 million-square-foot “first-mile” fulfillment center that Amazon opened in September 2020 at 2500 N. Normandy Blvd.

A source familiar with Amazon’s newest project in Deltona said the company began posting job openings at the location in July.

The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that could indicate plans to open in the fall, but was not certain. He was less optimistic about a fall opening for the Daytona Beach property.

“They may not want to upend the market before the peak season,” a source said of the five-story Amazon Robotics fulfillment center at 2519 Bellevue Ave. in Daytona Beach.

“We are constantly evaluating our network”

Rios told The News-Journal: “Our Daytona facility remains part of our Florida plans. Interior and exterior construction is ongoing and we will have more information to share when the work is complete.

“We continually evaluate our network based on business needs and to improve the experience for our employees, customers and partners. As for the Deltona facility, it remains in our future plans and work is ongoing.”

Time matters

Last year, Amazon estimated on its “Buy with Prime” blog that 42% of consumers start their holiday shopping in late September.

This is consistent with the results of a recent US consumer survey.

According to a July 11 article published in Chain Store Age, a retail industry journal, Vericast’s Holiday Retail TrendWatch 2024 survey of 1,000 U.S. adults found that 44% plan to start their holiday shopping in October.

Amazon needs to hurry up with its hiring if it plans to open new facilities in the country before this year’s holiday shopping season, according to global logistics consultant Marc Wulfraat.

“Amazon’s peak season is November-December. So if they’re going to open a plant, they’ll do it earlier,” said Wulfraat of MWPVL International Inc. in Montreal, Canada.

“I don’t have it on record as opening before 2025,” he said, referring to his latest forecast for when the robotics fulfillment center in Daytona Beach would open. He still expected the Deltona facility to open this year, but acknowledged that could also be pushed to next year.

Some projects were abandoned, others delayed

During the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, Amazon overextended its distribution network as government-imposed lockdowns led to an increase in consumers shopping online, Wulfraat said.

As e-commerce spending returned to normal levels in 2022, Amazon adapted by closing some facilities and canceling or delaying projects to expand its distribution network.

Florida Today, a sister publication of The News-Journal that covers Brevard County, reported Aug. 28 that Amazon plans to finally open two distribution centers this fall in Melbourne and Cocoa. Both buildings were completed two years ago but have ultimately sat idle.

Neither the Cocoa, Daytona Beach nor Deltona facilities were listed in Amazon’s Aug. 14 announcement of planned 2024 Florida openings. However, a Cocoa city spokesman told Florida Today that the company’s 202,044-square-foot delivery station is also expected to open in the fall.

How many jobs does Amazon intend to create here?

When Amazon announced its planned robotic fulfillment center in Daytona Beach, it said the facility would create 1,000 jobs. It did not say how many jobs the new Deltona facility would create.

Two recent news reports about new Amazon locations suggest the new Deltona facility could also create 1,000 jobs.

North Carolina’s Triangle Regional Research Partnership announced in April that its new 620,000-square-foot Amazon Pre-First Mile center will create up to 1,000 jobs.

The new pre-budget center in Port St. Lucie, which opened Aug. 14, was expected to create 1,000 jobs, according to TCPalm.com, the online news site of The News-Journal’s sister newspaper in St. Lucie County.

How many Amazon employees are already employed here?

Amazon currently employs close to 2,000 workers, if not more, in Volusia County.

More than 1,500 people are believed to work at the “first mile” fulfillment center at 2600 N. Normandy Blvd. in Deltona. Several hundred people are believed to be employed at the 66,000-square-foot “last mile” delivery station at 2400 Mason Ave. in Daytona Beach.

The latter was the e-commerce giant’s first facility in Volusia, opening in September 2019.