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The tremendous economic impact of Rickenbacker Global Logistics Park on Columbus and central Ohio over the next 12-15 years was detailed October 18 for members and guests of the Central Ohio IFMA Chapter.
The presentation by representatives of the Columbus Regional Airport Authority and Duke Realty Co./Columbus Industrial Group was at the Fawcett Center at The Ohio State University and was the last in a three-part series on area growth and development.
The first seminar focused on a Brookings Institute study which forecasts broad growth in both population and building infrastructure in the metropolitan area. The second featured examples of successful and continuing redevelopment of the downtown housing market, particularly condominium-style living.
Both Art Makris, Duke vice president, and Robin Holderman, airport authority vice president, waxed enthusiastically about current and future development of some 1,300 acres of industrial land that includes the new Rickenbacker Intermodal Terminal that is expected to be operational next year.
Some 20,000 new jobs are expected to be created as the park is developed and tenants are secured.
Makris said, “This (logistics park) is an exciting project, and we have invested a number of resources here. This is truly a project that is going to be an economic engine driver for central Ohio, and a true public-private partnership between Duke Realty and Capitol Square and the Columbus Regional Airport Authority.”
One reason for the apparent success of Rickenbacker is that it is an inland port, and, in time, will be able to move goods throughout the country much faster than today because of port congestion along the east and west coasts, and the inability of large ships to pass through the Panama Canal on their way to west coast ports.
As the Rickenbacker facility develops, goods will arrive at Norfolk, Va., and be shipped by the Norfolk Southern to the intermodal terminal here and then distributed by truck or sent on by rail to Chicago.
The Norfolk port receives about 2 million of the 20 million containers that reach U. S. annually. This number for Norfolk is expected to double with improvements underway at the port. Considerable money is also being spent to improve what is known as the Heartland Corridor, the Norfolk-Columbus-Chicago rail line as well as the intermodal terminal.
Makris said, “What’s happening… is that end users are demanding large distribution centers within various parts of the country. The fact that we are tied to the port in Virginia and are within a one-day truck drive to over 50 percent of the nation’s population puts us in a sweet spot to compete (for businesses). We recently competed with St. Louis and won and we competed with Indianapolis and won.
In discussing the 20 million-square-foot park, Holderman said, “This is the largest development project in the state, and potentially the biggest economic engine that the state of Ohio has ever seen.
“The amount of investment private and public going into this park is in the billion dollar range. The impact that this park with 20,000 potential new jobs is going to have on this region will be terrific because of the connectivity to the port and to Chicago.”
The park is divided into four areas, north campus, rail campus, intermodal campus and air cargo campus. Excel Logistics (Toys R Us) has leased the largest building—572,000 square feet—on the north campus which Duke is now expanding to about 1.2 million square feet. Also, a 936,000-square-foot building is under construction there which will virtually complete the north campus.
The company will then concentrate on developing the rail campus, intermodal, and air cargo campuses. The intermodal facility will be able to complete some 400,000 cargo lifts from trains to trucks annually, tripling the ability of Norfolk Southern to distribute goods across the U.S. and Canada.
Makris said several hundred new jobs are being created by Excel and Build-A-Bear, which is moving its distribution center here. Also, he said an electronics company, which is not part of the park project is moving into town, shutting down distribution centers in New York, New Jersey, Atlanta, and Chicago for Columbus and Las Vegas.
“Real companies are coming into central Ohio, and there are many, many more that Robin and I are meeting with,” Makris said.
In chapter business before the presentation, vice president Sandy Stayrook reminded members and guests of the annual President’s Dinner November 3 at the Worthington Inn. She urged those who plan to attend to make their reservations and send their checks to Shelly Sensenbrenner, chapter administrator, by October 27.
Mary Mika won the $25 Kroger gift certificate when her business card was drawn from the chapter fishbowl.