Real estate development company Hunt Midwest has procured a parcel of land north of the Kansas City International Airport in the interest of spurring development of what will be one of the largest logistics parks in the state of Missouri.
Their recent acquisition of 1,300 acres is part of a plan expected to attract warehousing and manufacturing businesses to the KCI region.
Add to this the 2,000 adjoining acres already owned by Hunt Midwest and the portion of land turns out to support up to 18 million square feet of logistics and manufacturing space.
The 3,300 acres stretches north-to -south from Hwy. 92 east of Platte City to Interstate 29, and east-to-west from about Todd Creek Road to Bethel Road.
The proposed manufacturing park, recently named KCI 29 Logistics Park, is poised to play a valuable role in alleviating the sluggish supply-chain and creating more than 8,000 jobs.
“With Hunt Midwest’s existing land holdings in the area we saw this acquisition as a good strategic move to augment the unprecedented industrial growth that Kansas City is experiencing. Hunt Midwest will leverage its real estate development expertise, resources, and relationships to offer users optionality for both warehousing and manufacturing,” said Ora Reynolds, Hunt Midwest’s president and CEO. “Disruptions in the global supply chains have driven the need to store more inventory closer to the end consumer and to restore manufacturing back to the United States. We hope to capitalize upon these demand drivers with some big “wins” right here in Kansas City.”
For nearly two years, the United States has been trying to address supply chain disruptions, and companies have tried to adapt to the higher costs associated with acquiring goods due to raw-material shortages and increased transportation costs. To overcome the widespread supply-chain issues, it has become clear that to lower costs more distribution facilities are needed.
“KCI 29 Logistics Park will offer users the ability to reach 90% of the U.S. population in two days via truck, or overnight via air freight. Tenants will be attracted to the central location and proximity to logistics drivers such as KCI Air Cargo operations, which includes hubs for UPS, FedEx, and USPS. Another advantage for tenants is the opportunity to be close to the manufacturers they supply,” said Chris Meier, spokesperson for Hunt Midwest.
“With shifts in consumer demand, the need for accelerated speed-to-market is essential for companies in today’s global economy. The KCI 29 Logistics Park provides prime, vertical ready offerings and will join the more than 60 million square feet of industrial development that has been built in the KC region since 2012,” said Tim Cowden, Kansas City Area Development Council’s president and CEO. “With the leadership of Hunt Midwest in securing acreage near KCI Air Cargo and our nearly completed state-of-the-art single terminal, and the work of KC SmartPort which promotes the region’s industrial strengths, Kansas City continues to lead as a top market for manufacturing and distribution.”
The KCI 29 Logistics Park represents an investment of $1.3 billion over the next 10 years.
“Platte County EDC is excited to see the KCI 29 Logistics Park come to fruition and the further development of infrastructure and amenities it will spur,” said Tina Chace, Platte County Economic Development Council’s executive director. “The game changing development utilizing Hunt Midwest resources will be a catalyst for continued growth, providing new job opportunities and training for our community. Our diverse labor pool combined with easy access to KCI Airport will make this large-scale business park an attractive location for any company looking to enter or expand in the Kansas City market.”
Considering the completion of the modern single terminal airport–the new gateway to the region-is set for next year, city officials are confident the new airport will bring many economic opportunities to the surrounding area.
“In addition to Kansas City’s desire to serve our region’s flying public, our investment in a new airport terminal was also meant to spur new economic activity in underdeveloped areas surrounding KCI,” said Quinton Lucas, Kansas City’s Mayor. “I am glad to see these efforts materialize, and I appreciate Hunt Midwest’s partnership in these job-creating efforts.”
According to DJ Gehrt, City Administrator of Platte City, the large-scale development will likely involve a decades long development build out process. None of the development property is located within the city limits of Platte City.
“Hunt Midwest development is such a large project that it will eventually have a significant positive economic impact on the entire north metro area (all of Platte and Clay counties),” said Gehrt. “There are both opportunities and challenges inherent for Platte City that are inherent in being adjacent to such a large development. However, it is so early in the development process that it is impossible to provide an informed evaluation or judgment on any specific short- or long-term impacts on Platte City.”
Thus it is not surprising the city would like to see the state move swiftly on improvements/widening of Hwy. 92 on the east side of I-29.
“Since our 2016 Hwy. 92 corridor study, Platte City has been steadily building the foundation to improve Hwy. 92 east of I-29 as a four-lane divided urban highway segment. The first tangible step in that direction was the Exit 18 improvements completed last fall,” Gehrt said.
“These large-scale development plans along the Hwy. 92 corridor east of the city limits validates the city’s Hwy. 92 improvement efforts over the past six years and creates a stronger case for MoDOT and the city moving forward as expeditiously as possible with the next phase of the east side four lane improvement project,” Gehrt added.
Hunt Midwest was established in 1985 and is headquartered in Kansas City, with a sister commercial real estate development company (Hunt Southwest) located in Texas.