The 108,000-sf facility, scheduled to open early next year, willbe located in the Northwest Temple Industrial Park. Cathy Bradley,Nextel's chief services officer, says construction will begin assoon as possible on the one-story center, which will be positionedon 22 acres at 1600 Eberhardt Rd. in the Acer America subdivision.The site already is being prepped. Bradley says 500 peopleinitially will be employed, with as many as 800 workers over thelong term. She says Temple was selected because of its potentialfor a highly skilled workforce to complement Nextel's rapidlygrowing customer base. The Temple center will be Nextel's fifthcustomer support center. Other centers are located in Rutherford, NJ, Denver, Atlanta and Hampton Roads, VA.

"The announcement of Nextel's decision to locate in Temple isexciting news," says Bell County Judge Jon Burrows, citing thecounty's inroads into the high-tech market. Joining Burrows in hisfavorable comments is W.A, "Buck" Prewitt, chairman of the board ofdirectors for the Temple Economic Development Corp. He says BellCounty's newest business exemplifies the EDC's ongoing efforts toattract companies and capital investment to the town