The pretzel manufacturer Stellar Snacks is investing $137 million in its new West End plant. The 434,000-square-foot facility is expected to begin production by September 2024.
Beshear, who attended Tuesday’s announcement, promised the project will create 350 full-time jobs over the next 10 years.
“And while that number is great … we know a job is more than a number,” Beshear said. “It brings dignity to an individual, it brings security to a family, it brings opportunity to the next generation. So Stellar Snacks’ success is part of a new era of prosperity we are seeing in Kentucky as we become a national economic leader.”
The site at 1391 Dixie Highway once held Black Leaf Chemical, which produced pesticides like DDT, and other industrial companies. Toxic chemicals from their operations contaminated the surrounding land. Efforts to clean up the property were part of a larger trend to restore brownfields in the city’s West End.
During the announcement, Democratic state Rep. Keturah Herron said west Louisville residents will be prioritized in the hiring process.
“I want to make [it] clear that you won't find any other hard working individuals or people or more dedicated people than those who call west Louisville home,” she said.
Beshear said employees for the upcoming facility will make an average of $30.20 an hour, along with benefits. Hiring is expected to begin in March 2024, though there will be an initial job fair for early hires and training Dec. 16.
Stellar Snacks is a woman-owned, vegan pretzel company founded by Elisabeth Galvin and her daughter Gina. The company has two plants in Northern Nevada.
