McLeod USA to open new location

McLeodUSA will this spring begin operations in the Kelly Plaza on South National Avenue, according to McLeodUSA Regional Manager Steve Smith. McLeodUSA, which has its headquarters in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, provides voice and data telecommunications, including local and long distance telephone services, Web hosting and high-speed dial-up Internet connections.

Smith said the new location will allow the company to expand its commitment to the Springfield market. Dawn Svenson Holland, marketing communications manager for McLeodUSA, said the South National location also will enable the telecommunications provider to handle expected employment growth in customer care and order management.

Customer care representatives answer calls 24 hours a day. "You're going to call and get a live person to talk to who will help you out and do their best to resolve the problem," she said.

The order management center will process orders for McLeodUSA's services from customers in other parts of the region.

"When we set up customers to upgrade to McLeodUSA, services, there's a lot of paperwork and a lot of details involved, and those order-management folks will take care of that," Svenson Holland added.

After the move, some McLeodUSA employees will remain at the company's offices at 313 Park Central East. The telephone directory publishing operation will remain on Republic Road, Smith said.

Holland noted that the South National location will be McLeodUSA's major employment center. McLeodUSA now employs more than 50 people in Springfield, and Svenson Holland said as many as 180 jobs could be added in the next two years.

McLeodUSA entered the Springfield market in 1998, when it merged with Dial US, a Springfield company that had served the local market since 1983.