A developer has submitted plans for two new warehouses at the Chrin Commerce Center which would more than double the warehouse space in the Palmer Township complex.
Indianapolis-based Duke Realty has submitted plans for a 1-million-square foot warehouse and a 630,000-square-foot warehouse which would bring the center total to more than 3 million square feet.
The Lehigh Valley is a prime spot for warehouse development because of its proximity to populous northeastern United States cities.
"You can hit a third of the U.S. population and half of Canada within a 10-hour drive," said Jeff Palmquist, senior vice president of the northeast region for Duke Realty.
The warehouses are built to general specifications so that a tenant can move in and fine-tune it to its needs. The buildings will be waiting for a company looking for a quick move-in without waiting five years for development approvals and construction.
"E-commerce is a hot tenant these days," Palmquist said. "Amazon is doing these. There's Wal-Mart in Bethlehem."
The Palmer Township planning commission will review the warehouse plans in May, according to township supervisors Chairman Dave Colver.
Palmquist is hopeful for final approvals by October or November. Construction would then begin on the larger of the two warehouses in the spring unless a prospective tenant comes forward and pushes for an earlier start.
Site work is underway for the already-approved Duke project. Palmquist hopes to have that one complete by the end of 2015 or early 2016. The warehouse is under construction on Main Street west of Van Buren Road. It's being built by Verus Partners of Chicago.
The two new warehouses are proposed east of the current Duke project.
A 425,000-square-foot warehouse for Denver-based DCT Industrial is nearing completion on Van Buren Road near Hollo Road. The structure is up and work continues on the interior and the parking lot, Colver said.
Colver said all the warehouses comprise 25 percent of the commerce center land. No more warehouses are permitted under the zoning. The remainder will be office, retail, manufacturing, hotel and medical development, he said.
CHRIN COMMERCE CENTER WAREHOUSES
Porsche regional training and distribution center; 130,000 square feet; opened in 2009
Mondelez Global warehouse; about 100,000 square feet; opened in 2013. Mondelez aquired Kraft, Cadbury and Nabisco.
DCT Industrial warehouse; 425,000 square feet; slated for completion in 2015.
Duke Realty; 1.1 million square feet; slated for completion in late 2015/early 2016.
Duke Realty; 1,015,740 million square feet; proposed in May.
Duke Realty; 629,800 square feet; proposed in May.