The Arizona Republic's printing operations will be relocated to Las Vegas, impacting local employment.
The Arizona Republic newspaper will move its printing operations from Phoenix to Las Vegas starting October 2023, resulting in the layoff of 117 employees. This transition, part of a cost-reduction strategy by parent company Gannett Co., Inc., aims to streamline operations while maintaining delivery services. The facility in Deer Valley will officially close after producing its final copies, with Gannett assuring customers that quality journalism will remain unaffected despite the changes.
Arizona – The Arizona Republic, one of the state’s leading newspapers, will relocate its printing operations to Las Vegas, beginning October 2023, which will result in the layoff of 117 employees at its Deer Valley printing facility in Phoenix. The transition is being implemented as part of a joint-publishing arrangement designed to reduce operational costs.
The closure of the Deer Valley printing facility is set to take effect following the production of the last copies of The Republic on October 5. Although the printing operations will move, Gannett Co., Inc., the newspaper’s parent company, has indicated that this change should not significantly affect delivery times for print customers. Additionally, breaking news, updates, and sports scores will remain accessible online through the newspaper’s website.
Gannett has stated that the cost savings anticipated from this move will help finance investments in journalism and support growth initiatives. Specifically, Lark-Marie Antón, the chief communications and brand officer for Gannett, emphasized that the location of printing does not impact the quality of journalism provided by the newspaper.
All full-time and part-time production employees at the Deer Valley facility will be eligible for severance packages as the printing operations are expected to continue smoothly until the closure date. Following the relocation, print editions of The Republic will be transported from Las Vegas to Arizona. This change will also lead to earlier deadlines for news copy and advertising submissions.
In addition to The Republic, other Gannett publications currently printed in Phoenix will transition their printing to a facility in Riverside, California, starting in October. The Las Vegas Review-Journal will take over the printing, advertising, and distribution aspects for The Republic once the shift is complete.
Despite the layoffs, Gannett has indicated a commitment to exploring further opportunities to consolidate printing operations in order to improve efficiency and cut costs. Earlier this year, the company announced the closure of another local printing facility in Michigan, which resulted in 109 job losses.
The Deer Valley plant, now marked for closure, is a substantial 300,000-square-foot facility, sitting on a 20-acre site near 19th Avenue and Williams Drive in North Phoenix. This property was sold to Atlas Capital Partners and DRA Advisors for $38 million in August 2023; however, Gannett had been leasing it for ongoing operations.
After the closure of the Deer Valley facility, a minimal number of employees will remain on site to assist with relocating equipment and cleaning up the premises. Gannett has yet to announce plans for the future of the existing printing presses that are currently located in the Deer Valley facility.
The shift in operations represents a significant change for The Arizona Republic and reflects broader trends within the publishing industry, where companies are increasingly making strategic adjustments to improve operational efficiencies in the face of shifting consumer habits and evolving technology.
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