Tractor Supply Co. has opened a new distribution center in central Georgia.

The Telegraph of Macon reported Tuesday (http://bit.ly/15oXFz7) that the 690,000-square-foot facility officially opened on Monday in south Bibb County.

The Bibb County labor force and Macon's location, which is about a two-hour drive from the port of Savannah, were major factors in the company choosing the middle Georgia city to host its new distribution center, said Alex Stanton, senior vice president of supply chains for the company.

"We felt (Macon) could support the growth we're expecting over the next couple of decades," he said.

The facility has brought nearly 300 new jobs and is expected to make a $50 million impact on Bibb County, said Pat Topping, senior vice president of the Macon Economic Development Commission. Tractor Supply Co. is the largest project that local economic development officials have landed for the Macon area in the past couple of years, Topping said.

Bibb County Commission Chairman Sam Hart thanked voters for approving a penny sales tax two years ago that he said was used for economic development initiatives. The special purpose local option sales tax has generated $3 million.

"We passed the SPLOST to help economic development," Hart said, "This was the first opportunity to do that."