FedEx eyeing Seekonk for Regional Distribution Center

December 2, 2015 4:54 pm

By Ana Bottary

abottary@abc6.com

@anabottary

The land off Route 6 in Seekonk that sits next to a golf driving range may just look like an overgrown lot when passing by, but to FedEx it’s the perfect location for their regional distribution center. Seekonk business owners, like Tony Oliveira, it will be beneficial for the business community.

"It’ll help businesses, it will attract business to the area. The traffic flow will increase. It will improve the economy in this area," says Oliveira, Owner of Auto Show.

The Seekonk planning board recently gave their conditional approval for the shipping company’s site plan for a 250,000-square-foot distribution center. Town planner, John Aubin, says this is the first of several steps that will require local and state permitting. If approved, it will bring approximately 180 part and full time jobs.

Neighbors on Hollister Road, whose homes border the proposed site, have concerns about potential impacts the center will have–especially with many of their properties surrounded by wetlands.

"It’s going to be a lot of traffic. It’s going to be noisy. We are wondering how the water is going to be drained out. Are we going to get more water?" asks Seekonk resident, Sandra Santos.

Aubin says part of FedEx’s proposal is a sound barrier around the back of the building to keep noise from tractor trailers as far away from residents as possible. He says the planning board has requested the DOT to have a light be installed near the proposed area, and they’re looking into other ways to control traffic, possibly through increased enforcement. FedEx has active applications in front of the town’s conservation commission regarding building near the surrounding wet lands.

If all aspects of this project are approved, FedEx would break ground sometime in 2017. FedEx’s next hearing is January 11th to address the wetland issues.