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- Amazon plans to start distribution operations at a vacant Marriott-Slaterville facility this year, according to a city official.
- The facility, expected to employ up to 600, is undergoing necessary upgrades.
- The building was completed in 2022 to be used by Amazon, but has sat largely vacant and unused since then.
MARRIOTT-SLATERVILLE, Weber County — A vacant 3-year-old facility meant to be an Amazon distribution center is in the process of getting upgrades so it can finally enter into operation.
Marriott-Slaterville city attorney Bill Morris said contractors have pulled a total of four permits so far to get the structure operating, including one to install electric vehicle chargers in the parking lot of the facility. Another permit allows for the remodel of the conveyor and package delivery system inside the building.
"Amazon, they're moving ahead with opening up," said Morris, who, as city attorney has been intimately involved with the company's plans to expand to Marriott-Slaterville. "It's good to see that they're finally gearing up and will open and be hiring."
He understands the facility is to start operating as a distribution facility this year, possibly as early as this spring, and that it will employ up to 600, as previously anticipated. The renewed efforts to get the structure up to speed started in December, Morris said, and Rocky Mountain Power extended a new power line to the site last month.
The 185,000-square-foot warehouse structure off 400 North on the east side of I-15 was finished in 2022 but has sat inactive since then, prompting plenty of speculation from the public about its future. Somehow, word has spread about the possibility of the facility finally starting distribution operations, and Morris said some job-seekers have contacted city staffers looking for more information.
"I have people walking in, even, saying, 'Hey, I'm looking for a job. When do they open?' But I don't have a contact. I don't know," Morris said.
Amazon officials were tight-lipped when contacted but hinted at the possibility of movement at the site.
"We are actively using the Marriott-Slaterville facility as an equipment hub to support our operations across the country. This site has also remained in our plans to launch as a delivery station," Nissa LaPoint, a regional Amazon media contact, said. She referenced an "upcoming announcement" about the site, possibly in the spring.
Salt Lake City-based Gardner Batt owns the building and built it with plans to lease to Amazon. Michael Batt, one of the company founders, hinted at the possibility of forward movement, like LaPoint, but didn't get specific. "They are completing some electrical changes to accommodate their latest systems, and they intend to be using the building in the near future," he said.
At any rate, there were numerous workers in the lot outside the expansive white-and-blue building on Tuesday. Morris said they are installing charging stations to serve the fleet of electric trucks that'll be used to make package deliveries. Those charging stations necessitated the Rocky Mountain Power extension of the power line.
While the anticipated jobs have been cause for much of the interest from the public, the specter of increased truck traffic around the facility has also been a focus. Morris said delivery trucks would come and go from the facility during off-peak hours to minimize potential congestion in and around the 400 North/I-15 intersection, which gets busy at times. Delivery trucks would likely leave and be gone much of the day making deliveries, chiefly within Weber County, though an estimated 50 semitrailers a day are also expected with the packages ready for final distribution. "It's the last-mile distribution center," he said.
As speculation simmered about the Marriott-Slaterville facility, Retail Dive, a trade publication, reported in 2023 that it was one of many across the country Amazon had "canceled, closed or delayed" as the online company looked to trim costs.
