Copeland Trucking to move after facing Des Moines fines
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Copeland Trucking's current Des Moines operations center is at 1202 Thomas Beck Rd. Photo: Jason Clayworth/Axios
Copeland Trucking will relocate its Des Moines operations center to near downtown under an agreement approved by the city council this week.
Why it matters: The company employees dozens of metro residents and provides service to some of the largest manufacturers and food processors in the Midwest, including Tyson Foods and Pella Windows & Doors.
- It is being displaced from its spot near Gray's Lake because of rezoning.
Catch up fast: Copeland Trucking moved its DSM operations three years ago. It had previously been across the street in the same building as Confluence Brewing.
- The property was zoned as an industrial area but is now part of the city's Gray's Lake redevelopment plan.
- Copeland's 2019 move caused the business to lose its grandfathered zoning status.
Driving the news: DSM is selling three parcels of undeveloped city-owned property in the Central Place Industrial Park to Copeland for the relocation.
- The $315,000 sale includes almost five acres that are adjacent to the DSM River, just north of E. University Avenue.
- The city also agreed to credit Copeland $75,000 off the price to help pay for soil remediation that's necessary prior to construction.
Details: Two buildings with a total of about 23,000 square feet are planned over two phases.
- The first is essentially a shed with a stone façade and multiple bays for trucks, Charlie Hoag, a manager for the company, told the council Monday.
- It will be constructed in Wisconsin and trucked to DSM for assembly.
Of note: Copeland must be out of its current spot by Jan. 1 or face the possibility of hundreds of thousands of dollars in retroactive $750 daily fines for violating city zoning.
- Some council members voiced support in extending the timeline if necessary.
The intrigue: Hoag told the council that he was initially "salty" about the move but now loves the plan because the company gets "a wonderful spot."
- He said — and he was being sincere — that the city's zoning staffers have been "a joy to work with."
