UPS Inc. plans $1.5 million in improvements to its northeast Bend warehouse, according to the company and city records.

The plan includes moving the UPS customer pickup area from 2470 N.E. Second St. to the warehouse on Boyd Acres Road near Brinson Boulevard, along with improvements to the Boyd Acres building, according to plans submitted to the Bend Community Development Department.

UPS in November purchased for $3.5 million the 5.5 acres at 62965 Boyd Acres Road that it had previously leased from S&H Associates, a Bend firm, according to Compass Commercial Real Estate Services. Compass broker Pat Keskard handled the sale.

The company will eventually hire more employees as part of improvements at the facility, a regional transfer point for incoming and outgoing packages, said UPS spokeswoman Jessica Scrace, of Seattle.

“When the local economy improves, it dictates more shipping and more goods coming in and out of the area,” Scrace said. She described the building purchase and improvements as “kind of a normal piece of the expansion process, to make sure we can meet the needs of the area.”

Scrace said she did not know the schedule for consolidating the two operations or what would become of the Second Street building.

The Atlanta-based company applied for a permit to alter the Boyd Acres building, primarily to add a 1,537-square-foot office mezzanine, a customer service area and a vehicle maintenance bay, according to the application. Additional employee and truck parking are also planned.

UPS’ plans serve as another indicator of an improving local economy, said Roger Lee, executive director of Economic Development for Central Oregon.

“We’re always encouraged when larger companies are purchasing their facilities,” he said. “It shows investment in their communities and that they’ll be here for the long haul.”

The area of Boyd Acres Road where UPS is located lies within a city enterprise zone, making it potentially eligible for incentives in exchange for creating jobs or paying higher-than-average wages. But the company has not applied for those incentives, said EDCO Marketing Manager Ruth Lindley.

— Reporter: 541-617-7815,jditzler@bendbulletin.com