Academy Sports bringing 700 jobs to Cookeville (2013, construction, college)

[JMT]

Moderator's note: This thread was started when this project was shrouded in secrecy. Once the announcement was made that Academy Sports and Outdoors was behind this, the title of the thread was changed. The original post:

This looks exciting and very promising. I wonder what company is considering opening a plant in Cookeville that will bring 700 jobs? I hope this will spur the state to speed up the construction of the new I-40 interchange at Mine Lick Creek Road. And I hope the city, county, and state will all work together to build the roads and whatever other infrastructure is needed for this.

Herald Citizen - New plant may be coming to city creating jobs

[TN Tin Man]

I would guess a logistical corporation being so close to Interstate. Or expansion of one of the current top 5 companies.

Current Employers in Putnam County..
Cookeville Chamber- Community Profiles - Cookeville

[UNITYinternational]

You better hope they are paying a real livable wage and not just taking land, tax relief and other perks.

[MetropolitanTN]

Exciting news!

[Vascodagama]

Cool! I was starting to look for work.

[JMT]

Originally Posted by TN Tin Man

I would guess a logistical corporation being so close to Interstate. Or expansion of one of the current top 5 companies.

Current Employers in Putnam County..
Cookeville Chamber- Community Profiles - Cookeville

Could be. However, since the Mine Lick Creek I-40 exit won't be finished for several more years, this site won't really have interstate access for quite a while.

Also, 230 acres is an awfully large site for a factory that needs 700 workers. The current largest plant in Cookeville is Cummins which has 600 workers, and it sits on a lot that's not even 1/10 the size of this new place. So I really am curious what's going to go there.

[TN Tin Man]

Mine Lick Creek I-40 ?? Looks like they want to make a very large Industrial Park and take the traffic of heavy truck off Willow Ave.. Could be some large logistical complex like Avert .

[NewTexans2010]

Sounds awful interesting, JMT! Good jobs are always a great "plus" for a community. The hush-hush/secrecy thing makes it all the more curious.

We have to thank you for all your great posts here; you have a very good sweep of knowledge and "boots-on-the-ground" viewpoint. Good common sense and decency! Can't ask for more than that.

We are headed to the Cookeville area in our retirement. Seventy years young, and we've lived in Texas and Ohio, so we can claim we've "burned up" in one state and "nearly froze to death" in another. Which brings to mind our philosophy.

What did Aristotle say about "moderation" and living between two extremes? The Greeks believed there to be three "ingredients" to beauty: symmetry, proportion, and harmony Yep--we think the Cookeville region may hold all three for us! More jobs will mean more harmony.

Adding 700 new jobs will be a great bonus to the area. It will help us all get back to the notion we were founded on: self-reliance, independence, and freedom. Self-respect comes from all three of these, and with self-respect comes courtesy, manners, and care for others.

Both I and the little lady of 49 years have been working since we were each 14 years old (and some of it was truly "back breaking" and hazardous work; none of this easy desk-job or computer stuff) and we are all the better for it. Hard work never hurt anyone--c'mon 700 new jobs!

Peace and Blessings,


P.S.
we love your concern for grammar and punctuation; early in my career I taught allegedly "honors" secondary senior English classes in Ohio. My first class began with me exclaiming: "Today we are going to study Shakespeare," which was met with sleepy and bleary-eyed looks by students who mumbled: "...who dat dude?" Needless to say, it was all downhill from there. I re-trained and certified to teach Vo-Ed Machine Trades (since I put myself through college as a T&D maker) and was much happier in training young adults who learned skills which gave them many opportunities for jobs, careers, families, and freedom!

[TN Tin Man]

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20...lified-workers

[Vascodagama]

I think Tennessee as a whole is very attractive for companies currently struggling in other states where operating costs are skyrocketing. I also think Tennessee is attractive to working class people who are also struggling in states where the cost of living is skyrocketing and other negative social factors. Tennessee could see significant growth and the greater Cookeville area could see a big part of this over the next few decades.

The current employers in the Cookeville area do seem to be very picky on who they hire. They are also significantly underpaying skilled and educated employees. These employers and community will be on the losing end when they continue this business tactic. Seems like the average income for skilled labor is barely above poverty level which creates an incentive to leave the area.