(Perry, IA) -- Construction is progressing on the new JBS sausage plant in Perry.
Rachel Wacker of the Greater Dallas County Development Alliance says steel beams are being set at the production facility.
The new manufacturing plant is being built two years after Tyson Foods closed its facility in Perry.
"That was approximately 1,200 to 1,300 jobs that basically went away within a month's time period. And this is such a great, sustainable way for a community like Perry to recover from that loss, " said Wacker.
JBS says 250 workers will be hired the first year, and 250 the following year.
"We don't experience recovery like this in economic development. When a community suffers a major loss, or a major employer loss, it's kind of few and far between when we see a recovery like this at this pace," Wacker said.
She says the new JBS plant is a step in the right direction, a more sustainable pace of growth to begin bringing jobs back with a high quality employer.
Wacker says the 135-million dollar sausage plant is expected to be operational by this fall.