DHL loss could cost USD250m a year
The departure of DHL Express from Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport will cost the area more than USD250 million a year, according to a study released Tuesday by the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce.
The commonwealth of Kentucky will lose about USD3.5 million in annual sales taxes, the study said.
Part of the economic blow will be softened when FedEx opens a distribution center on Mount Zion Road in the spring, the study said.
Nonetheless, the loss is considerable, said Northern Kentucky Chamber President Gary Toebben.
“As these numbers indicate, DHL’s decision will have a significant economic impact on this region,” he said. “Some of this impact will be mitigated by the jobs being created by the FedEx distribution center.
“As a region, we must recommit ourselves to job creation and eliminate any barriers for new and expanding businesses.”
Lured by Ohio incentives worth USD422 million, DHL on Friday chose Wilmington, Ohio, for its central hub.
DHL plans to create 900 new jobs and preserve 6,000 current jobs in Wilmington. At the airport in Hebron, Ky., DHL will reduce its 1,200-person workforce to 350 by the fall of 2005.
The chamber of commerce analysis put the figure of direct DHL jobs lost at 580 full-time equivalent positions because some of the jobs being moved are part time.
Additionally 700 jobs affiliated with Astar Air Cargo Inc, the domestic airline that flies DHL freight from Cincinnati, will transfer to the facility in Wilmington, the study said.
In spring 2005, the opening of a FedEx Ground distribution center in Boone County will bring 550 new jobs to the local economy.
The USD65 million, USD335,000-square-foot FedEx Ground facility at U.S. 25 and Maher Road will employ 550 workers at its opening next year, said Allison Sobczak, a spokeswoman for FedEx Ground. It could have as many as 1,000 employees at full capacity.
