Jobs Brewing in Glendale's 'New Frontier'

From the Glendale Star

By Tom Scanlon
Along the Loop 303, the “Welcome to Glendale” signs might need an addendum: “Please apply within.”

In the rapidly expanding “New Frontier” area of west Glendale, where the city has been gobbling up massive amounts of land via annexation, jobs are coming—by the hundreds, perhaps even by the thousands.

It all started with the 2017 annexation on Reems Road and Peoria Avenue, a then-sleepy farmland. The Woolf Logistics Center annexation sounded dull, at the time, suggesting clunky warehouses.

Instead, the area sprouted two of the sexiest companies to come to Glendale: White Claw and Red Bull.

The makers of popular seltzers and energy drinks are not just brewing drinks—they are brewing jobs. 

Glendale City Manager Kevin Phelps, who a few weeks ago said the New Frontier is “printing money for the city,” reflected on the job growth of the area.

“White Claw is already hiring,” Phelps said. 

Indeed, White Claw/Mark Anthony Brewing will have a variety of positions, from production to high-end analysts.

“Are you interested in working for the fastest-growing beer company in the U.S.?” the White Claw recruiting pitch asks.

“We strive to bring quality jobs to our community and are pleased that White Claw will have its research and development team in Glendale at the facility. We’re also proud that this is the most state-of-the-art brewery built in the United States in the last 25 years,” Phelps said.

A dozen large properties have either been annexed into Glendale or in process in the Loop 303 area. All are expected to generate jobs, both in construction during development and permanent positions.

Red Bull and the Ball Corporation are building a 700,000-square-foot manufacturing facility with a projected 140 jobs. A Red Bull distribution center of the same size will hire another 100 workers.

For its White Claw manufacturing plant, in the finishing phases of a nearly 1 million-square-foot site, Mark Anthony Brewing expects to hire 200 workers.

Even the dreaded—by some Litchfield Park/Waddell neighbors—Love’s Travel Center would bring 40 to 50 new jobs, according to a presentation by a developer.

If city council liked that, they loved this, also from the Cotton Properties pitch: “Proposal will generate more than $5 million in sales revenue.”

Developers pitch jobs, revenue

At the June 23 Glendale City Council meeting, developers of recently annexed or annexation-in-process projects pitched their plans, stressing how many jobs would be created and how much sales tax revenue would be generated for the city.

Alsup 303 Industrial Park, Park 303, West 303 Crossing, Allen Ranches and Cotton Properties joined the crowd of developers flipping the Loop 303 area from farmland to industrial.

“Every development will create both direct and indirect jobs in the region, in addition to employing significant numbers of people within the construction industry,” Phelps said.

Allen Ranches plans a staggering 9 million square feet of warehouse and manufacturing space.

According to the Allen Ranches presentation to city council, its construction costs will be more than $50 million.

Park 303’s pitch at the June 23 meeting included:

• Will create a sense of arrival when entering the Loop 303 corridor.

• Visible benefit to the area will be jobs and road improvements.

• Property values in the area will typically increase.

Simlarly, at the June 23 Glendale City Council meeting, the attorneys representing Cotton Properties gave council a PowerPoint pitch.

According to the developer, “More than 1,800 acres of land within the New Frontier District has been annexed into the city since November 2019.”

• The city estimates the proposed developments will generate more than $17 million in annual tax revenue.

• Accordingly, Cotton Properties and its 161 acres will generate an average annual tax revenue of $1.5 million.

• The proposed commercial corner alone will create an estimated 40 to 50 full-time equivalent jobs.

Cotton Properties estimated the Love’s Travel Center would have sales of at least $5 million per year.

Now hiring

While many of the jobs in the New Frontier area are in the hazy, “to be determined” phase, one major company is hiring now.

Mark Anthony Brewing Company held a “virtual job fair” in late June. According to a posting, “Mark Anthony Brewing will be producing the iconic White Claw Hard Seltzer, Mike’s Hard Lemonade, Mike’s Harder Lemonade, Cayman Jack and MXD brands for the western United States.”

The company is hiring positions in human resources (“a tactical and strategic consultant optimizing talent management, talent acquisition, performance management and employee-focused programs to enable exceptional business results”), inventory accounting and infrastructure (“Infrastructure engineer will be responsible for the maintenance and operation of the compute, storage and network infrastructure for the Mark Anthony Brewing facility in Arizona”).

The brewing company’s infrastructure is an anchor for west Glendale—and a sign of what is to come.

“This area is critical for Glendale because it assures that for decades to come, Glendale will be a city of choice to live, work and play,” Phelps said.

“In the past 18 months, Glendale has seen global corporations such as Red Bull, Rauch, Ball Corporation and Mark Anthony Brewing choose this area of the city for expansion or as the location for their operations,” Phelps said.

Indeed, Glendale’s New Frontier might be dubbed Industrial Valley.

“New businesses and jobs generate additional revenue that is important for the city so we can continue to invest in our core services, like public safety, parks and libraries,” Phelps said.