Coastal Cold Storage, a refrigerated warehouse and freight company, held an official ribbon cutting for its new $41.8 million facility in Foristell on July 30. 

The 125,000-square-foot cold storage facility is located on Cotton Road next to Wright City East Elementary School and has created 52 new jobs in Warren County. 

Gov. Mike Kehoe was in attendance for the ribbon cutting and received a tour of the facility with Director of Economic Development Michelle Hataway from Coastal Cold Storage President John Dunard. 

Dunard said he chose the location for the facility because of its access to major freight transit routes like Interstate 70 and its centralized location in the country, placing 70% of the population within a 10-hour drive, according to a press release. 

Coastal Cold Storage specializes in the storage and transport of food products like milk, eggs and frozen foods like chicken nuggets. The facility sports a massive refrigerated warehouse regulated to roughly 38 degrees and a freezer section regulated to roughly 0 degrees. 

During his remarks, Dunard emphasized that while the company focused on logistics and food storage, it was equally important to him to provide his employees with opportunities for growth and career advancement. He referenced the address he chose for the facility, 10801 Opportunity Drive.
“We chose 10801 Opportunity Drive because the name captures our core belief - that opportunity isn’t just found, it’s created through hard work, vision and commitment,” said Dunard. “This facility represents more than cold storage, it’s about generating jobs, empowering Missouri’s workforce and helping businesses nationwide move their products more efficiently.”

Kehoe pointed to the facility as a marker of growth for the community, and was especially happy to see the facility creating high-paying and skilled jobs for Missourians. 

“They’re creating jobs, that’s what it’s all about, creating opportunities for Missourians,” said Kehoe. “That’s what you want, you want somebody who’s going to invest who understands what it means to give families an opportunity.”

He also felt that when areas like Warren County are experiencing business growth like the opening of Coastal Cold Storage, sometimes the best thing the state government can do is to get out of the way. 

“Entrepreneurs, family-owned businesses, they're pretty smart. They understand what it takes as far as risk-capital, as far as putting a business plan together,” said Kehoe. 

He did say that there are times the government does need to step in, especially when dealing with complex infrastructure like the Improve I-70 project. 

“When times come when we need to help with infrastructure, for instance the highway improvements, interchange improvements like you’ll see here in Warren County, those are the kind of things that we need to be able to help with to accommodate the expansion of this capital,” said Kehoe. “We’re really proud to see this facility.”