DaimlerChrysler to build coastal Georgia plant

SAVANNAH - In one of the biggest economic deals in the state&#39;s history, officials say a $750 million DaimlerChrysler van plant is coming to coastal Georgia. <br> <br> A formal announcement is scheduled Friday in Savannah. <br> <br> Governor Barnes said yesterday the German automaker will employ 3,300 people with an average salary of $47,000. <br> <br> This morning, Marc Binder - a spokesman based in DaimlerChrysler&#39;s Stuttgart, Germany headquarters - confirmed the governor&#39;s statement, saying that other possible locations for the plant had been ruled out. <br> <br> But, he said, DaimlerChrysler had not yet made the final decision to go ahead with the project, and said there was no official timeline he could release about when a decision was expected. <br> <br> Barnes estimates about 700 additional jobs will be created by suppliers locating near the site. State officials say impact studies show up to ten-thousand jobs could be created overall. <br> <br> The plant - which will produce Sprinter and Vito cargo vans - is the first built by an automaker in Georgia in 55 years. <br> <br> Construction at the site in Pooler - 12 miles west of Savannah - is scheduled to begin in July, with the first vans rolling off the assembly line in 2005.