 |
|
FILE PHOTO/ STEVE WILLIAMS FLIGHTQUEST AERIAL
PHOTOGRAPHY The Lehigh Valley International Airport hosted an Air Show in
August 2014. On Wednesday, the Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority finalized
an agreement of sale with the Rockefeller Group, who will purchase 260 acres of
land north of the airport in Allen Township for $9.9 million. The land is
expected to be used for the FedEx Ground distribution center, a project slated
to start construction pending several approvals.
|
The Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority, which runs
Lehigh Valley International Airport in Hanover Township, Lehigh County,
finalized an agreement of sale of about 260 acres of airport-owned land in
nearby Allen Township. Officials made the announcement at a news conference
Wednesday.
Rock-Lehigh Valley LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of The
Rockefeller Group, will buy the land for $9.9 million. The transaction is
expected to close this year, pending various governmental approvals.
In October 2013, the authority agreed to sell the land to
Rockefeller. In July 2014, the organization approved the purchase and sale
agreement with Rockefeller and a separate three-party agreement with
Rockefeller Group and FedEx Ground.
The New York City-based Rockefeller Group wants to
develop a FedEx Ground distribution center in Allen Township, Northampton
County, on 260 acres of land north of the airport off Willowbrook Road.
If approved, the project, estimated to cost more than
$300 million, would take several years to complete.
For years, developers have been eyeing land surrounding
the airport for potential commercial and industrial sites, while the airport
authority has been looking for ways to reduce its debt from court judgments
tied to a 1990s lawsuit.
The airport authority still has about $7.5 million left
to pay for the lawsuit by Nov. 30, and the money from this land purchase is
expected to go toward that payment, Darren Betters, director of business and
commercial services for LVIA, said this morning.
“Basically, this is a huge step for us as we work to get
the airport on better financial footing,” Betters said. “It will be very good
for the local economy.”
Rockefeller Group announced it would hope to close the
transaction by the summer, Betters said, noting that Rockefeller still needs
several approvals, including those from the state Department of Transportation.
FedEx has conditional approval for the project from Allen
Township, and the documents that will be recorded list those conditions, said
Larry Oberly, township supervisor. As long as FedEx meets those conditions, the
plans may move forward, Overly said. The conditions relate primarily to zoning
regulations in place at the time of their approvals.
PennDOT is reviewing the highway occupancy permits
required for the FedEx project on state-owned roads and to mitigate for the
extra traffic from the development, said Sean Brown, spokesman for PennDOT
District 5.
Airport Road and Race Street, which would be the main
transportation routes for the project, are state-owned roads. Willowbrook Road
is not, according to Brown.
The Federal Aviation Administration is working with the
airport authority regarding the proposed sale of a parcel of land at the Lehigh
Valley International Airport (ABE) for the construction of a FedEx facility,
said Arlene Salac, public affairs spokeswoman for the FAA.
The release of any dedicated airport property at ABE for
this project will need FAA approval, Salac said. This will require LNAA to
conduct an environmental analysis in accordance with National Environmental
Policy Act, which will be reviewed by the FAA. In addition, the FAA is
conducting studies to determine if the proposed FedEx development will have any
impacts on airport operations.
Clark Machemer, vice president and regional development
officer for The Rockefeller Group in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, said in a
news release that the investment would generate hundreds of construction jobs
and thousands of permanent jobs, an expectation supported by the demand for
warehouse and distribution facilities in the region.
Machemer and Brian Mahoney, corporate spokesman for The
Rockefeller Group, did not return requests for comment.
Source: LVB.com
No comments:
Post a Comment