Mayor says motor company will bring 4,000 jobs to the area

Jan. 20, 2015, was a day of new beginnings in Texas, said Jim Lentz, Toyota Motor North America CEO.

In Austin, new Texas governor Greg Abbott was sworn in. In Plano, Toyota broke ground on its future North American headquarters.

Lentz said the support he has received from the governor's office and the city of Plano has been impressive.

"It's clear that this is the right place to begin the next chapter of Toyota's history in North America," he said.

Toyota decided to break ground on its facility in an unconventional way. Rather than pitching shovels in the ground, a Toyota Tundra mowed over the dirt mound.

Lentz also invited the event attendees to write a wish or dream on a red tag and hang it on one of six yaupon holly trees. The trees, which were already covered with tags containing written wishes from Plano ISD Academy High School students, will be planted on the campus toward the end of development.

Lentz said Japan gave cherry trees to Washington, D.C., more than 100 years ago as a sign of friendship between the two countries.

"We view these trees as a symbol of our partnership with the city of Plano as well as the Dallas Metroplex," Lentz said.

Toyota will make conservation efforts at its new headquarters, including preserving 100 percent of the protected trees on the site and using reclaimed water for irrigation, Lentz said.

The facility will sit on 100 acres of land and is expected to open in 2017. The relocation is expected to bring about 4,000 jobs to the area, Plano Mayor Harry LaRosiliere said.

Some Toyota employees have already made the move to North Texas. Lentz called these employees pioneers.

Terri Von Lehmden, who works in Toyota's project management office, moved to Frisco in August.

"[Moving the headquarters to Plano] is probably the best decision given where we need to go for the long-term sustainability of our company," she said. "Having two separate offices on opposites sides of the U.S. makes it hard to have efficiency and really drive change as an organization."

Von Lehmden said she and her family have received southern hospitality from the people they have met in Texas so far. She said her children are now heavily involved in sports.

LaRosiliere said Toyota is making efforts to support its new home, fulfilling the company's vision for innovation.

"We realize this is a continuation of the vision," he said. "Your current vision is to lead the way in mobility, to enrich the lives of people in the safest and most responsible manner and to move people throughout the world through constant innovation and constant quality."