Garyline (asi/55990) is migrating south. The Top 40 supplier is relocating to Greater Tampa, FL, moving from its current headquarters in the Bronx, NY.

The supplier expects to begin operations in Florida in the next 12 to 15 months, according to Scott Denny, vice president of sales and marketing at Garyline. “We will continue to operate in New York for a transition period, so we can produce in both locations to avoid service disruptions,” he added.

The supplier’s parent company, Gary Plastic Packaging Corp., will be leasing 279,000 square feet of a 400,000-square-foot building under construction in the North Pasco Corporate Center in Spring Hill, about 50 miles north of Tampa. Gary Plastic expects to bring more than 550 jobs to Pasco County, FL, over three years, and is investing around $16 million in lease-hold improvements, according to the Pasco Economic Development Council (EDC). Among the investments will be manufacturing equipment, furniture and other fixtures. Developer Harrod Properties is set to invest approximately $50 million in the building, land and infrastructure.

Richard Hellinger, Gary Plastic Packaging Corp.

“The additional production and warehouse space will allow us to keep pace with increased demand, improve production efficiency and expand our line of USA-made recycled products,” Denny said.

Pasco County was “a natural fit” for the new facility “given the corporate center’s location and its opportunity for efficient growth,” said Richard Hellinger, president of Gary Plastic.

Gary Plastic focuses on two product categories. Garyline is its promotional products division. It also has a packaging division that manufactures stock rigid/reusable plastic containers primarily for the pharmaceutical, dental and electronics industries. The supplier manufactures reusable products with an average content of 30% recycled plastic resins and is doing research and development to incorporate bio-plant based materials into its products.

Bill Cronin, president and CEO of the Pasco EDC, lauded the supplier’s environmental efforts and said he was excited that a family business, employing hundreds of people, would call Pasco County home.

“We are here to help them grow for years to come,” Cronin added.

The Pasco County Board of County Commissioners provided nearly $1 million in incentives to Gary Plastics, including $858,000 for job creation in the region. Commissioner Jack Mariano said the suppler “is going to provide great opportunities for our workforce from manufacturing jobs and skilled mechanics to supervisor and management jobs.”

Garyline ranked 25th on Counselor’s most recent list of top industry suppliers, with $57.7 million in North American promotional products revenue.