Amazon speaks: Brownsville getting a delivery station

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Amazon officially announced on Wednesday its intention to build a 62,000-square-foot delivery station on a little over 13 acres at FM 511 and Paredes Line Road (1910 FM 511), with clearing of land having already begun earlier this month.

Jessica Breaux, Seattle-based Amazon’s senior manager of economic development, said the new delivery station will enable the company to better serve customers in Brownsville and the surrounding area, noting that launch plans are in “very early stages.”

“We’re grateful for our partnership with the city of Brownsville and the Greater Brownsville Incentives Corporation, and look forward to sharing more details about this facility in the future,” she said.

Amazon delivery stations facilitate the “last mile” of the company’s order process, which helps speed up deliveries. Packages are shipped to a delivery station from neighboring Amazon Fulfillment and Sortation Centers, loaded onto delivery vehicles and delivered to customers, according to the company.

“This is not just good news, it’s a clear signal of where we’re headed,” said GBIC Chief Executive Officer Gilberto Salinas. “Brownsville is emerging as a destination of choice for global companies seeking access, infrastructure and a workforce ready to grow with them.”

“GBIC’s role in this project reflects our commitment to creating the right conditions for transformative investment,” he added. “We’re proud to have supported this opportunity, through strategic coordination and long-term planning.”

Texas is second only to California in Amazon facility square footage, according to the construction equipment rental firm BigRentz, with most facilities located in or near major metro areas. An Amazon delivery center began operations in McAllen in 2021.

Brownsville Mayor John Cowen Jr. said Amazon’s decision to expand in Brownsville “reinforces what we’ve long known, (that) our city is an economic powerhouse in South Texas.”

“This new delivery station represents more than just jobs and infrastructure,” he said. “It’s about opportunity, access, and momentum. We’re proud to welcome Amazon and look forward to the positive impact this investment will bring to Brownsville and the surrounding communities.”

There’s no word yet on how long construction of Brownsville’s delivery station will take — though some Amazon facilities reportedly go up in as quickly a year — or how many people the facility will employ.

Amazon announced last month that it will spend roughly $4 billion building more than 200 delivery stations by the end of 2026 to triple the size of its rural delivery network in order to speed up delivery times in more parts of the country, creating more than 100,000 new jobs in the process and “driving opportunities through a wide range of full-time, part-time and flexible positions in our buildings and on the roads,” according to the company.

Amazon estimated that delivery times in rural areas would be cut in half on average as a result of the network expansion.