Woodburn’s highly anticipated Amazon facility, largest in PNW, begins operations

Published 11:05 am Friday, August 1, 2025

After multiple delays, the Woodburn Amazon fulfillment center is officially up and running two years after its projected opening.

Amazon representative Matthew Gardea has confirmed that the facility is operating and says that its “first ship” was June 11. The five-story, 3.8 million-square-foot warehouse, located at 450 S. Butteville Road in west Woodburn, is now the largest Amazon fulfillment center in the Pacific Northwest.

“Amazon’s newest operations site in Woodburn, PDX8, is quickly growing to meet customer demand,” Gardea said. “The facility currently employs approximately 1,500 people and continues to add hundreds of new employees each week.”

Gardea also said that once fully staffed, the site is expected to employ more than 2,800 people, with temporary hiring likely to reach approximately 3,500 during the holiday season.

Project history

The Woodburn Amazon project started construction in July 2021. Amazon initially said the warehouse would open in fall 2023; however, this date was pushed back due to modifications to the warehouse’s automation system.

The project has also included changes to local infrastructure to accommodate potential traffic it may add to Woodburn, including a new roundabout intersection for Butteville Road and Oregon Highway 219 and added capacity to the southbound Interstate 5 off-ramp.

According to Chris Kerr, Woodburn community development director, Amazon has also made multiple financial contributions to the city throughout the project, including $300,000 to the city to purchase a new transit bus and several hundred thousand dollars for multiple intersection renovations.

Additionally, though it was not required as part of their land use approval, Amazon gave $1 million to help renovate and construct a new artificial turf soccer field at Legion Park.

Growth in Woodburn

Kerr and Woodburn Mayor Frank Lonergan have listed the Amazon facility as one of the city’s most significant new developments.

“I think it’s great for Woodburn. I’m really happy they’re here because they definitely will help the economy. It’s good to have industrial growth in the community,” Lonergan said in anticipation of the facility’s opening in a September interview.

According to Kerr, city leaders have spent the past two decades working to modify Woodburn’s urban growth boundary to bring in property for significant employment centers like Amazon.

The Woodburn Amazon facility comes in the midst of the city’s rapid growth in recent years.

The Portland State University Population Research Center has dubbed Woodburn the fastest-growing city in Marion County and the third-fastest growing in the state among those with a population of more than 10,000. Portland State’s population projections also show that Woodburn’s population will grow to 37,216 by 2030, a 40% increase from the city’s reported 2023 population of 26,468.