MIAMI (CBSMiami/AP) -- About 500 new full-time jobs will be created in Central Florida as online retail giant Amazon announces plans to open a new distribution center in the area.

The retailer said in a statement Wednesday that employees will pick, pack and ship large items such as patio furniture, kayaks, bicycles fishing rods and pet food at a 1 million-square-foot facility in Auburndale, Florida.

Pay will start at $15 an hour with benefits.

Amazon currently employs more than 13,500 full-time workers in Florida.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said the new distribution center was a "big win" for Polk County.

The county is part of Orlando's metro area which had the nation's fifth-largest increase for metropolises from mid-2017 to mid-2018. Tens of thousands of Puerto Ricans moved to the Orlando area after Hurricane Maria devastated the island in 2017.

(© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)