The 1.2-million square-foot TJX HomeGoods distribution center is almost complete and the anticipated soft opening is slated sometime later this month. A TJX spokesperson said the facility will be fully operational later this year. The addition of the distribution center will see an increase of 1,000 jobs in the Mahoning Valley.

LORDSTOWN — The highly anticipated opening of the TJX HomeGoods Distribution Center is just around the corner.

“We expect the facility will become fully operational later this year,” said Andrew Mastrangelo, the company’s assistant vice president of global communications.

In fact, Lordstown Mayor Arno Hill said a soft opening will happen within the month, and Mastrangelo confirmed that.

“We are pleased to confirm that we recently received our temporary certificate of occupancy from the village of Lordstown, and we expect an initial, limited opening of our new HomeGoods / Homesense Distribution Center in Lordstown to occur later this month,” Mastrangelo said.

The temporary certificate of occupancy from the village essentially means the company has the right to do what it wants within its building until it receives a final inspection, Hill said.

TJX and Mastrangelo had no further details about what the soft opening will entail, but Hill assumes the company could be bringing in people for training and “ramping up the building slowly.”

The addition of TJX to the Mahoning Valley will bring roughly 1,000 new jobs. Hill said progress toward opening the distribution center is welcome news.

“I’m ecstatic,” Hill said. “There are going to be enough jobs that people will be able to get, and I’m excited about it.”

The initial news in 2018 about TJX HomeGoods moving into the village was met with pushback from some residents, but an overwhelming majority supported the distribution center from the beginning. The pushback came in a 2018 court action that attempted to stop the zoning change that

permitted the 1.2 million-square-foot building on Ellsworth Bailey Road.

Hill, however, said TJX will be “good neighbors” to the surrounding residential homes and explained that the company set aside a sizable land buffer between the property and nearby homes.

To bring the facility to Lordstown, an incentive package was put together, including a tax abatement of 75 percent for 10 years on improvements to the property, said Nicholas Coggins, assistant director of the Trumbull County Planning Commission.

“In exchange, a minimum investment of $140 million would be made that included a $90 million, 1.2 million-square-foot facility and the creation of 1,000 full-time, permanent employees,” Coggins said.

The 75-percent abatement will save the company between $1.3 million and $1.6 million over the 10-year span.

THE FUTURE

Hill said the future is bright for Lordstown and the Valley. He predicts more businesses coming to the same area of the facility and Lordstown Motors Corp., as well as Ultium Cells LLC.

“Every day I’m a little more optimistic about more and more coming to the area,” Hill said.

Hill said Lordstown is essentially an economic destination due to the village’s location and various amenities offered to businesses, such as water, sewer and electric utilities, as well as access to interstate routes, main railroad lines and natural gas.

“With everything we have to offer, we’re a destination,” he said. “Success brings success, and we’re looking for HomeGoods to be successful.”

Hill also said the company is on pace to do good things, once the economy comes back after taking a hit from the COVID-19 pandemic. As for TJX HomeGoods, the company is looking forward to the future as well.

“We are very excited about the opening of our new facility in Lordstown, creating approximately 1,000 new jobs for area residents over time, and becoming part of the greater Mahoning Valley community,” Mastrangelo said in the statement. “We appreciate the hard work and cooperation so many have shown us throughout this process.”

The company did not have an exact date when the facility will be fully operational.

nhawthorne@tribtoday.com