KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – As the end of 2022 nears, two proposed Amazon Warehouses only 15 minutes apart sit empty. In Alcoa, an Amazon Fulfillment Center remains under construction. It was announced in February of 2021, and construction continues on the property with most of the work focused on infrastructure around the building.

An official with the Blount County Mayors’ office told WVLT News, to their knowledge, the fulfillment center is still set to open.

“The Amazon Fulfillment Center is progressing on target to begin hiring the first quarter of 2023 and begin operations in the summer,” a spokesperson with the mayor’s office said. “They are in the process of moving equipment into the facility now.”

About 15 minutes north, a warehouse sits completed at the old East Towne Mall location in North Knoxville. The building was announced in 2021 too and promised hundreds of jobs starting at $15 an hour.

Driving around the building, WVLT News didn’t see any construction workers or equipment.

Council Member Lauren Ryder represents the area the fulfillment center is in.

Ryder said via text message the project was delayed by nearly 12 months due to supply chain issues, but she was assured, despite rumors, it would open.

In a statement to WVLT News, Amazon officials said the buildings are still in their plan.

“While we don’t have a specific launch date to share right now, once we have a better sense of timing, we’ll work with the local community and employment organizations in the area to hire hundreds of employees at each site.”

This delay comes as Amazon looked to lay off thousands of employees and ditched plans to build warehouses in some cities it announced prior.

https://www.wvlt.tv/2022/11/15/east-tennessee-amazon-warehouses-sit-empty-incomplete-ahead-looming-deadlines/