By Greg Stiles

WHITE CITY — When John Strange lies awake in the middle of the night lately, he counts resumes, not sheep.

The recently appointed human resource manager for the West Antelope Road Amy's Kitchen plant figures to hire more than 300 employees over the next four months in anticipation of an Oct. 9 start-up date.

"It's a little overwhelming in a sense when you are shooting for a starting date and have got to have everybody on board at that date," said Strange, who most recently handled similar duties at burgeoning Fire Mountain Gems in Grants Pass. "With hundreds of people to hire, it's definitely challenging. I'm confident I can reach that mark, but I'll feel a lot better when I get a few hires."

The company's initial Jackson County product will be pizza.

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Even before Amy's completed purchase of 50 acres in Whetstone Industrial Park from the city of Medford for $350,000 in December 2004, resumes poured in by letter carrier, e-mail and fax.

"The feeling I get right now is there is quite a bit of excitement about a new company coming to town," Strange said.

"Right now, we're focusing on management positions, then we'll use those people to hire the rest of the team," Strange said. "We'll give them information on the company, the benefits, ideals behind a privately held company. We're looking for full-time, 40-plus hours, benefit-eligible people. This is not seasonal work, and that's a huge advantage for us."

Strange didn't reveal specific wage scales for jobs at the 165,000-square-foot plant. However, last August corporate human resources director Cindy Gillespie indicated wages will be comparable to those paid in Santa Rosa, ranging between $9 to $12 an hour for entry-level positions to $20 for skilled workers.

"They are an attractive employer in their category," said Bruce Laird, a state regional economic development officer. "They want to attract and retain their employees and the only way they do that is the right compensation."

Amy's Kitchen local management team working under general manager Pat Holtz is taking shape as well.

In addition to Strange, Jim Hofstrand will oversee logistics operations, Fred Tabacchi will manage quality assurance, Robert Gates is the plant engineer and Greg Schule is the plant controller. Tabacchi held a similar position at nSpired Natural Foods in Ashland. Gates and Hofstrand will transfer from Amy's California plant.

Strange said production manager, kitchen manager and sanitation manager roles will be announced in about two weeks.

Gillespie said it's likely that between 25 to 50 Santa Rosa employees could transfer to the new plant.