Spectrum, a suite of communications services from Charter Communications Inc., held a grand opening for its new Field Operations Center in Herculaneum on April 25. The facility, 1555 McNutt St., houses more than 100 employees who service customer homes and businesses, maintain the network and lead network construction initiatives.
Monte Miller, communications manager for Charter’s Midwest region, said Spectrum invested more than $2.1 million to renovate the facility, which was built in 1997 for Bluff City Beer. Miller said the facility opened in October and waited to hold the grand opening until April.
“It’s just a way to celebrate what we’re doing in the community,” he said. “We could have built a new building, but part of our initiative is to find and reuse or repurpose buildings, renovate them and keep them viable in the community.”
Miller said the facility holds a technical center, a warehouse for equipment, a large meeting space, office spaces and a large training space.
Miller said the company will hire more than 100 employees in the St. Louis area in the coming months.
Aaron Detwiler, area vice president for Spectrum’s Missouri Management Area, said during the grand opening that the company offers employees the chance to build a fulfilling career with strong starting wages, excellent benefits and continual training and growth opportunities.
“We have starting wages at $20 or more per hour; career progression opportunities for our technicians to self-progress and increase their salary at their own pace; best-in-class benefits with comprehensive health insurance, 6 percent 401(k) match and a separate 3 percent investment from the company,” he said. “We also invest in our people. We offer Charter education benefits, which pay 100 percent tuition, books and certifications if those individual employees choose to. Spectrum is hiring and we’re looking for employees who want to start their career journey and grow with us.”
Miller said the company has a Spectrum Employee Community Grants program that allows Spectrum employees to nominate a local nonprofit organization to receive grant money. The employee must have volunteered at the organization for at least one year before making the nomination. The employee’s personal level of commitment is among the factors used in determining the level of grant funding. Nominated 501(c)(3) organizations must provide a critical social service and/or other basic needs.
Miller said Spectrum also offers other grant programs, such as Spectrum Community Center Assist and Spectrum Digital Education. Selection and application processes are involved.
The company donated $1,000 to CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) of Jefferson County during the grand opening.
“We do grant awards, so any of our employees who volunteer for different nonprofits, they can apply for grants for their nonprofit. Several times a year we distribute checks,” Miller said. “We do digital education grants, which are more for buying technology. Those are larger grants, usually in the tens of thousands for buying computers or setting up a classroom, or learning aids, that kind of thing.”
The grand opening also included speeches by Donna Litton, chief executive director of the Jefferson County Economic Development Corporation; John Gianola, the in-district liaison for District 22 state Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman; and District 114 state Rep. Ken Waller.
“I’m proud that you guys are here, and that’s not just words that I’m saying because of politics,” Waller said. “I live just up the street. I drove by this place for all the years it stayed vacant and was always wanting something to come in. It does help the community. For a building that sat vacant for a long time, it’s now beautiful.”
Detwiler said during the event that Spectrum is the number one rural broadband provider in the nation and will expand its network to connect more communities to high-speed internet, including more than 6,100 homes and businesses in Jefferson County and surrounding counties.
“Our investment in the new Herculaneum building supports our desire to better serve customers by strategically placing our teams to best reach customers across Jefferson County and nearby areas,” Detwiler said.
“Our employees live and work in the communities we serve, and more than half of our employees at our Herculaneum facility live in Jefferson County,” he said. “We’re here to serve customers but also support the local economy and be good neighbors.”
Spectrum employs more than 6,500 people in Missouri, with its largest employment centers located in the St. Louis metropolitan area.
Those interested in learning about job openings with Spectrum in Herculaneum or the St. Louis area may visit jobs.spectrum.com.