Pepsi-Cola Bottling Co. of New York recently announced plans for a new distribution facility on formerly vacant, City-owned property in the Zerega Industrial Business Zone in the Bronx. The project, which will cost a total of about $30 million, will allow the company to consolidate a portion of its distribution operations from two existing Bronx facilities, neither of which are large enough to accommodate its projected growth.

Prior to purchasing the site from the City, Pepsi New York explored moving some of its Bronx operations to a location in Elizabeth, N.J. As a result of the project the company will keep 80 employees in the Bronx, and an additional 90 distribution jobs held by independent contractors will remain in New York City.

Construction of the new facility is expected to begin in Fall 2006 and take roughly two years to complete.

Pepsi New York, the exclusive bottler and distributor of all Pepsi products in New York City and portions of Westchester County, was the successful respondent to a Request for Proposals EDC issued for the 287,000 square foot site in 2003. The company purchased the site from the City for $4.25 million. It currently has two bottling facilities in Brooklyn and Queens and four distribution facilities throughout Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx. In total, Pepsi New York has more than 800 employees in New York City.

The company explored moving some of its Bronx operations outside New York City, but is able to remain in the Bronx thanks in part to financing assistance from the New York City Industrial Development Agency (IDA). The company will receive sales tax benefits of about $1.1 million. In addition to tax benefits, the company may also qualify for about $127,000 in discounted energy from the Business Incentive Rate (BIR) program and about $212,000 from the City’s Energy Cost Savings Program (ECSP).

The Zerega Industrial Business Zone (IBZ) comprises 189 acres and is home to 56 industrial and manufacturing businesses that employ more than 2,400 people.

In January 2005, the Mayor’s Office of Industrial and Manufacturing Businesses (IMB) was created to implement the City’s first comprehensive industrial policy in more than two decades. As the cornerstone of the new policy, IMB spearheaded the creation of new Industrial Business Zones in 16 neighborhoods throughout the City. Companies that relocate to IBZs will be given a one-time tax credit of $1000 per employee, and the Administration has guaranteed not to support rezoning of IBZs to residential use.

Capitalizing on under-utilized City owned property is one of the best ways the City can catalyze area-wide development. Since 2002, the City has garnered more than $1.2 billion in private sector investment on the sale of 72 vacant sites throughout the City, 15 of which were in the Bronx. In total, the land sales have resulted in the retention and creation of more than 6,100 permanent jobs.