SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — Amazon.com Inc. has unveiled plans to open its first fulfillment center in the state of South Dakota. The 640,000-square-foot development will be located in Sioux Falls and is expected to open in 2022. Amazon expects to create 1,000 full-time jobs at the facility. Employees will work alongside Amazon robotics to pick, pack and ship small items to customers such as books, electronics and toys. Since 2010, Amazon has invested more than $1 million in South Dakota, including infrastructure and compensation to employees in the state.
FLEMINGTON, N.J. — Local developer Jack Cust will undertake a project in Flemington, about 60 miles west of New York City, that will convert the historic Courthouse Square into a 206-unit multifamily building with 20,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space. The project is part of a larger effort to redevelop and revitalize the town’s business districts and improve walkability via new zoning ordinances and promotion of shovel-ready development sites. Cust will also renovate and expand the Union Hotel, which has been in operation since 1814, with an additional 85 rooms. Redevelopment of Liberty Village, the 162,000-square-foot outlet mall, is also expected to be part of the long-term plan. Global design firm Stantec is currently compiling visual recommendations for the design of the revitalized downtown area. Their conceptual work utilizes stakeholder feedback, and the firm will offer visual recommendations in early 2021. Completion of the separate multifamily redevelopment project is slated for 2022.
WACO, TEXAS — Hello Bello, a provider of baby and family care consumer products co-founded by actors Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard, will open a 312,000-square-foot diaper manufacturing plant in Waco. The project is expected to bring about 110 new jobs and $31 million in total capital investment to the region. The site of Hello Bello’s new facility formerly housed the manufacturing operations of paper producer Domtar Corp. and is expected to open next summer.
SIMPSONVILLE, S.C. — Fitesa plans to invest $100 million in and create 40 jobs over the next five years to expand its footprint in Simpsonville. Fitesa was founded in 1973 and designs and manufactures nonwoven fabrics for the hygiene and healthcare industries. The facility is situated at 840 SE Main St., less than one mile from Interstate 385 and 14 miles southeast of downtown Greenville. The expansion will include a new production line that will manufacture materials for the healthcare industry. The expansion is expected to be completed in 2023. The company is headquartered in Brazil and has executive offices in Simpsonville.
PORTLAND, MAINE — Portland Foreside Development Co. has broken ground on an office project for financial services provider Sun Life in the city’s downtown area. The waterfront building will house as many as 700 employees of Sun Life and its subsidiary FullscopeRMS, which expect to have a total footprint of about 77,000 square feet. The property will also feature retail and restaurant space, as well as public plazas. Completion is slated for 2022.
LOS ANGELES — A public-private partnership between American Campus Communities and the University of Southern California (USC) has completed a second phase of a student housing development. The residence hall is located at 1630 San Pablo St. near the university’s Curry Hall and the LAC+USC Medical Center. Shared amenities at the property include outdoor and indoor study areas, retail space and a rooftop courtyard. “We were able to commit 35 percent of the overall area to open space,” says Benjamin Kasdan, principal at KTGY Architecture + Planning, which designed the community. “This is desirable not only during the COVID period, but beyond. The project includes many trends and features we expect to see in the future based on input from students and housing developers.”
WATERTOWN, MASS. — Engineering and construction management firm DPS Group has completed Phase I of an 80,000-square-foot life sciences project at 650 Pleasant St. in the western Boston suburb of Watertown. The facility will be used as a manufacturing plant for biotechnology firm Arranta Bio. Architecture firm TRIA designed the project.
RIDLEY TOWNSHIP, PA. — A partnership between Pennrose, the Delaware County Housing Authority, the County of Delaware and the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency has closed on financing for the final phase of the Kinder Park redevelopment in Ridley Township. The project will add 96 units of affordable seniors housing to the Kinder Park site, located near Philadelphia International Airport. The site already features 160 existing affordable apartments for seniors and individuals with disabilities, 154 townhomes, a community building and several parks. This phase is slated for completion in spring 2022.
MIAMI — Balfour Beatty has completed construction on River Landing Shops and Residences, a 2.5 million-square-foot mixed-use development along the Miami River. The Atlanta-based general contractor completed the project on behalf of real estate investment trust H&R REIT and South Florida developer Urban-X Group. Matthews Southwest provided owner representative services. River Landing Shops and Residences spans 8.1 acres of riverfront land. The development features a seven-story, 488,000-square-foot retail and commercial space housing national retailers and shops; 142,000 square feet of Class A office space; and two multifamily residential towers above a 12-story, 2,344-space parking garage. River Landing also provides boater access along the Miami River, a waterfront linear park and a 25,500-square-foot restaurant row that will accommodate up to seven fine dining to fast casual restaurants. The design team includes architects BC Architects, McNamara Salvia Structural Engineers and Steven Feller MEPFP engineers. At its peak, the job employed more than 750 Balfour Beatty workers. River Landing Shops and Residences began opening its retailers to the public in early September. The tenant roster includes national retailers T.J. Maxx, Chase Bank, AT&T, Ross Dress for Less, Burlington, Hobby Lobby, Publix, Old Navy and Chick-fil-A.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The UIP Cos. Inc. has delivered The Kiley, a $118 million multifamily project in Washington, D.C.’s Southwest Waterfront district. The 315-unit property will open to residents beginning in January. UIP installed a common area HVAC system with UV light scrubbers to kill viruses. The community will offer studio to three-bedroom floor plans and two-story lofts. Communal amenities will include a golf simulator, library, bar and games on the ground floor, as well as a rooftop deck and fitness center, a pool and grills. UIP acquired and broke ground on the site of The Kiley, which was an above-ground parking structure, in 2018. WDG Architecture designed the building to include arched concrete canopies as an homage to the parking deck’s original structure. The Kiley also mirrors in size Capitol Park Tower, an adjacent community that UIP bought in 2013. Capitol Park Tower was originally built in 1962 and UIP is implementing significant renovations to the property.