By John Lyon
Arkansas News Bureau
LITTLE ROCK — Windstream Corp. announced today it will add 210 new jobs in Arkansas and make Little Rock its permanent home.
Windstream, a telecommunications company created in 2006 when Alltel Corp. spun off its landline business, started with operations in 16 states and has since acquired five out-of-state companies and expanded to serve customers in 23 states.
Windstream announces it will permanently locate its corporate headquarters in Little Rock. The decision retains 300 existing jobs and creates 210 more. (Governor's Office photo)
With its five-year lease on office space in Little Rock set to expire and its service area greatly expanded, the company had been considering relocating its headquarters.
“After careful analysis, we decided that the best course for the company was to remain in Little Rock and in Arkansas,” Windstream President and CEO Jeff Gardner said in a news conference at the state Capitol today.
Gardner said Windstream will add 210 employees, mostly in Little Rock. The jobs will pay average of $40,000 a year and bring the company’s total employment in the state to 1,360.
Through the governor’s Quick Action Closing Fund, the state is providing Windstream an initial $1 million in incentives. The company can receive an additional $4.5 million in performance-based incentives over the next several years.
Gov. Mike Beebe and Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola joined Gardner in the news conference and applauded the company’s decision to stay in Little Rock and expand. Beebe said that in addition to the increase in high-quality, technology-based jobs, Arkansas will benefit from the constant traffic of Windstream employees and vendors into and out of the state.
“The influx of those folks in and out of our city, in and out of our state, has a ripple effect across our entire economy,” he said.
