FLORENCE, KY. — The Kroger Co. plans to invest $17 million to expand its newly built distribution center on Mt. Zion Road in Florence, a city in northern Kentucky’s Boone County. The 674,000-square-foot facility, which opened in fall 2017 after Kroger’s $60 million investment, currently employs 80 associates. The expansion project will ramp up production at the facility and create 250 new jobs, the majority of which will be full-time positions. The project is supported by a Kentucky Business Investment incentive of up to $1 million over 10 years. The company’s annual eligibility for the performance-based tax credit is linked to investment, job creation and retention and average hourly wage targets. Kroger will start to expand its team for the distribution facility in September. The grocer currently employs more than 21,000 people in Kentucky.
PHOENIX — Prologis has selected Graycor Construction Co. for the first phase of its new Prologis I-17 Logistics Center, located on 25 acres of infill space within Phoenix’s 7th Street Corridor. When complete, the first phase will comprise four buildings offering a total of 558,712 square feet of industrial space, divisible from 25,000 square feet to 211,000 square feet. The project is located at 2111-2145 S. 7th St. at the southeast corner of 7th Street and Interstate 17. Graycor will begin construction of the first phase in July, with completion slated for the first quarter of 2019. Phase I will feature four buildings ranging in size from 82,284 square feet to 211,208 square feet. Each building will offer 32-foot clear heights, 52-foot by 50-foot column spacing, 135-foot to 210-foot truck courts and the flexibility to accommodate multiple mid-size users.
ALPHARETTA, GA. — A joint venture between Hines and Cousins Properties will develop 10000 Avalon, a 251,000-square-foot, Class A office building in Alpharetta, a northern suburb of Atlanta. The new building will be the second and final office building within Avalon, a 2.4 million-square-foot mixed-use development. The total development cost for the building is expected to be $97 million. Cousins has a 90 percent ownership interest in the joint venture and Hines has a 10 percent ownership interest. AXIS Reinsurance Co. will anchor the new building, occupying 76,000 square feet. Sam Holmes of CBRE arranged the 15-year lease on behalf of the insurance company, which is a subsidiary of AXIS Capital Holdings Ltd. Hines and Cousins will start construction on 10000 Avalon this month, with initial occupancy scheduled for early 2020. The building is located adjacent to 8000 Avalon, which Hines and Cousins delivered in June 2017. The building is currently 98 percent leased to tenants such as SAP, Microsoft and coworking operator Spaces.
SYKESVILLE, MD. — Warfield Cos. has acquired a 91-acre site in Sykesville, roughly 25 miles northwest of Baltimore, with plans deliver a new mixed-use project. Upon completion, the former site of the Springfield Hospital Center will include 600,000 square feet of office, light industrial and retail space, as well as roughly 180 residential units, a full-service hotel and a 27-acre town park. The site, which will be rebranded “Warfield at Historic Sykesville,” includes 12 buildings that were constructed in the early 20th century. The buildings carry historical designations from the National Park Service and Maryland Historical Trust. Three of the buildings are restored and leased to Nexion Health, Zeteo Tech and The Carroll County Dance Center. The remaining nine buildings will be rehabilitated and repurposed for future users, owners and tenants. Construction and restoration activities are scheduled to begin in a few weeks on the first speculative office building. Groundbreaking for the first phase of new construction, a 145-unit townhome project, is expected to begin this month, with completion slated for early 2019. Elm Street Development is developing the townhome portion of the project. Dennis Boyle of Lee & Associates is handling the leasing assignment for the project’s commercial, retail …
EVANSTON AND OAK PARK, ILL. — Albion Residential, along with general contractor Clark Construction, has broken ground on two apartment projects in suburban Chicago. Albion Evanston will include 268 apartment units with 6,800 square feet of retail space. Existing buildings on the development site will be demolished this month with construction slated to begin in August. The property is scheduled to open in the third quarter of 2019. The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company provided project financing. Albion Oak Park will include 265 apartment units and 8,000 square feet of retail space. Construction of the building’s foundation is underway. CIBC and Associated Bank provided project financing. Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture is designing both projects.
ROGERS, ARK. — CBRE has arranged the sale of a 17-acre parcel of land located at 5911 W. Myers Ranch Blvd. in Rogers, roughly eight miles southeast of Bentonville. David Erstine of CBRE arranged the transaction on behalf of the buyer, Venture Park LLC, which acquired five of the six available lots for the development of Class B office/flex space. A separate party acquired the sixth lot for the development of a restaurant. The land, formerly known as Myers Ranch, will be rebranded as Venture Park. The office/flex space will range from 20,000 to 60,000 square feet and will offer open, collaborative workspaces. A construction timeline for the project was not disclosed.
GURNEE, ILL. — Englewood Construction has broken ground on a 6,524-square-foot Outback Steakhouse restaurant in Gurnee, located about 45 miles north of Chicago. Outback is relocating from 5642 Northridge Drive in Gurnee. Janet Pugh is the project architect. Tampa-based Bloomin’ Brands is the parent company of Outback. Englewood has recently completed Outback restaurants in Downers Grove, Ill.; Springfield, Ill.; and Merrillville, Ind.
CHICAGO — Kiser Group has brokered the sale of a .37-acre development site in Chicago’s Albany Park for $1.6 million. The buyer, Evergreen Real Estate Group, plans to develop 48 affordable housing units on the site, which is located at 3441 W. Montrose Ave. The seller was not disclosed. Michael D’Agostino and Jake Parker of Kiser brokered the transaction.
NASHVILLE, TENN. — Doster Construction Co. has completed construction of Novel Bellevue Place, a 337-unit apartment community located within Nashville’s One Bellevue Place, the mixed-use redevelopment of the former Bellevue Center Mall. Crescent Communities is the project developer, and Preston Partnership was the architect of record. Novel Bellevue Place features a mix of one- to three-bedroom units with granite countertops, Energy Star stainless steel appliances, Nest thermostats and subway tile backsplashes. Community amenities include a saltwater pool, clubroom with pool tables and shuffleboard, full outdoor kitchen with outdoor pizza oven and grills and a fitness center with cardio equipment.
AUSTIN, TEXAS — Brandywine Realty Trust (NYSE: BDN) will convert IBM’s Broadmoor campus in Austin, which spans more than 65 acres and houses more than 1 million square feet of office space, into a mixed-use, transit-oriented development. The first phase of the redevelopment, which is expected to be complete by early 2019, will revamp two office buildings. The overall project will create more public green space, walking trails and recreation areas to leverage the property’s proximity to The Domain, a shopping and entertainment destination that connects to the campus. Brandywine acquired Broadmoor, which has been discussed as a potential site for Amazon’s HQ2, about three years ago. The campus was developed as a build-to-suit for IBM, which still occupies most of the space, in the early 1990s.