8:16 p.m.: Nestlé to ask for expansion

By Jessica Kerman

June 27, 2008 08:14 pm

— ANDERSON — While Nestlé has not finished hiring for its new facility, the company has already begun planning for expansion of its 880,000-square-foot facility.
On Wednesday, the company will go before the Anderson Board of Zoning Appeals and request a special exception, according to the agenda of the meeting.
“Basically, we’re just doing it pre-emptively,” said Pam Krebs, spokeswoman for Nestlé. “We’re just doing it before we need the expansion so it doesn’t take so long when we need it.”
According to the staff report for the meeting, Nestlé is proposing an expansion of about 260,000 square feet and an additional 140 employees.
The company indicated that the proposed plant expansion is needed because of a new beverage product that will be manufactured at the site, according to the report. The new beverage was not named, but corresponds with product that Nestlé is currently producing, according to the BZA agenda.
Tim Stires, assistant director of Municipal Development, was not available Friday for comment.
The expansion also includes 47 new truck parking spaces between the guardhouse and the new addition, and 11 doors on a new shipping dock. The addition of dock doors is over the maximum allowed, requiring the company to ask for a variance from the board.
Nestlé owns more than 180 acres of land, most of which will remain unused, even after the expansion is finished, Krebs said. In 2006, Nestlé announced the construction of its $359 million plant in Anderson.
“The eye has always been toward a possible future expansion,” she said. “Doing this will allow us to expand in the future, but to my knowledge, we have no immediate plans for expansion.”
The BZA staff report says that 70 percent of the expansion area will be green or landscaped with grass and several evergreen trees.
The BZA staff states, “The plant expansion also meets all setback requirements. Staff notes the proposed manufacturing and warehousing expansion will bring additional economic development benefits and provide new employment opportunities.”