Tennessee-based company to invest $9 million, create 220 new jobs
NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam, Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe and Fitzgerald Collision & Repair officials announced today that the company will undergo a major expansion in the Upper Cumberland and create 220 new jobs in the region.
Fitzgerald Collision & Repair will invest $9 million to expand its existing facility in Rickman and establish new operations in Sparta.
“We want to thank Fitzgerald Collision & Repair for its investment in the Upper Cumberland region. We’re proud that Tennessee is a place where entrepreneurs like Robert Fitzgerald can turn ideas into businesses that positively benefit our local communities,” Haslam said. “Fitzgerald Collision & Repair’s significant expansion will create new job opportunities for residents in the Upper Cumberland and bring us one step closer to making Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs.”
Fitzgerald Collision & Repair recently announced a new vocational program and partnership with the Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) Livingston, which offers students training in commercial fleet truck maintenance and repair. With the Tennessee Promise and Tennessee Reconnect, Tennessee is the first state in the nation to offer all citizens – both high school graduates and adults – the chance to earn a postsecondary degree or certificate free of tuition and fees.
“There’s no question that the logistics and transportation industry is a crucial part of Tennessee’s economy,” Rolfe said. “Fitzgerald Collision & Repair is a homegrown success story that plays an important role in Tennessee’s growing transportation sector. We look forward to the impact this 220-job expansion will have on residents in White and Overton counties.”
Established in 2014, Fitzgerald Collision & Repair provides collision repair for commercial truck fleets across the U.S.
Fitzgerald Collision & Repair will add 100,000 square feet to its existing state-of-the-art repair facility in Rickman. The company will also establish a new facility in White County.
“The Fitzgerald family has decades of experience in the commercial trucking industry and this most recent venture to provide best-in-class collision and repair service has been a tremendous success,” Fitzgerald Collision & Repair Founder and CEO Robert Fitzgerald said. “With growing demand for our services, we can think of no better place to invest and create more than 200 new jobs than the Upper Cumberland. I’d like to thank the State of Tennessee as well as our local partners in White and Overton counties that have offered support for Fitzgerald Collision & Repair’s expansion.”
Fitzgerald Collision & Repair plans to create 145 new jobs at its expanded operations in Overton County. It will create 75 jobs at the new facility in White County.
Local officials applauded Fitzgerald Collision & Repair for its expansion plans in the Upper Cumberland.
“Overton County is proud Fitzgerald Collision & Repair calls us home,” Overton County Executive Ben Danner said. “Fitzgerald Collision & Repair is working with the TCAT to put students right to work out of school in the Rickman facility, which makes them a very good fit for Overton County and the entire Upper Cumberland.”
“I’d like to thank Robert Fitzgerald and his team for this new investment in Sparta,” White County Executive Denny Wayne Robinson said. “New job creation in our community is always a welcome development and White County is fortunate that a first-class company like Fitzgerald Collision & Repair has decided to create 75 new jobs here in our local community.”
Interested applicants can visit applyfitzgerald.com for more information.
Sen. Paul Bailey (R – Sparta) represents White and Overton counties in the Tennessee Senate. In the Tennessee House of Representatives, White County is represented by Rep. Paul Sherrell (R – Sparta) and Overton County is represented by Rep. John Mark Windle (D – Livingston).
About the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development
The Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development’s mission is to develop strategies that help make Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs. To grow and strengthen Team Tennessee, the department seeks to attract new corporate investment in Tennessee and works with Tennessee companies to facilitate expansion and economic growth. Tennessee is the only three-time winner of “State of the Year” for economic development by Business Facilities magazine. Find us on the web: tnecd.com. Follow us on Twitter: @tnecd. Like us on Facebook: facebook.com/tnecd.
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