Amazon economic impact 'immense'

Amazon.com's payroll at two proposed distribution centers in Hamilton and Bradley counties will spur a sizable economic impact, a University of Tennessee researcher says.

Every dollar paid on the more than 1,400 full-time jobs and more than 2,000 seasonal slots will create another 50 cents to 75 cents in regional payroll, said Matt Murray, the UT Center for Business and Economic Research's associate director.

The full-time jobs alone will spawn an annual payroll of about $42.7 million, estimates show.

Using the 50/75-cent multiplier, Amazon's annual economic impact related to the full-time positions could reach from $64 million to $74.7 million regionally, according to figures.

"It will create a significant economic impact for this particular region," Murray said, as Amazon employees, like other workers, shop, buy cars, use financial services and turn over the money they earn.

The seasonal slots, mostly filled during the last three months of the year, also will be "of immense value," he said. While the jobs may pay less than full-time posts and offer no fringe benefits, they'll often be filled by retirees and college students, he said.

Murray said the economic impact numbers are "ballpark." Spending leaks out of a smaller area because it typically doesn't produce as many items as people consume, he said.

He also said the economic impact of Amazon will be less than that of Volkswagen's auto assembly plant in Chattanooga. VW not only pays its workers more, he said, it has drawn some separate supply companies to the area.

"With VW, you get assembly jobs and you get supplier firms," Murray said. "You don't get that with Amazon."

Still, J.Ed. Marston, the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce's vice president of marketing, said Amazon will have "a powerful benefit" on the economy -- if the region wins the pair of 1 million-square-foot fulfillment centers.

Local and state officials continue to try to finalize the project by the Fortune 100 company, which would invest about $139 million in the centers.

In addition to economic impact, the Amazon project would diversity the region's economy, Marston said.

"It offers different kinds of employment to people with different skill sets," he said.

Contact staff writer Mike Pare at mpare@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6318.

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