Another monster warehouse pitched for Bethlehem

BETHLEHEM — California billionaire Edward Roski Jr.'s company is pitching a 1.2-million-square-foot warehouse on former Bethlehem Steel property.

The plans, which will go before the city Planning Commission as early as Nov. 10, do not name a tenant for the building proposed at the Majestic Bethlehem Center, but city officials say it is expected to bring up to 129 jobs.

Majestic spokesman Ed Konjoyan could not immediately be reached for a comment.

The warehouse, proposed for 3633 Commerce Center Blvd., would add to the nearly 2.5 million square feet of warehousing and distribution centers (more than 43 football fields) that already have taken root at Majestic Bethlehem Center. Majestic also is constructing and marketing a million-square-foot building with the possibility of a 930,000-square-foot expansion, making it likely the biggest one in the Lehigh Valley.

"This is what this [development] was planned for — distribution and warehousing," said Alicia Miller Karner, city director of community and economic development. "There is a lot of land back there, and it has excellent access to Route 412 and Interstate 78."

The Majestic complex is being built on 441 acres in a remote part of the former Steel property that was made accessible by Commerce Center Boulevard, which began construction in 2004.

The park, which Roski's Majestic Realty acquired eight years ago, has the potential for manufacturing and distribution buildings in excess of 8 million square feet. The first tenant, Crayola, moved into an 800,280-square-foot warehouse in 2013. Majestic has since welcomed a Wal-Mart fulfillment center. California Cartage Co. recently signed a lease for nearly 540,000 square feet of warehouse space.

Majestic abuts Lehigh Valley Industrial Park VII, which has landed warehousing and distribution tenants such as Zulily and Primark Stores Ltd.

The industrial park is a piece of a larger redevelopment plan for the once 1,800-acre Steel plant, which began shutting down two decades ago. Showier pieces of Steel's redevelopment include the Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem and SteelStacks arts and entertainment complex.

Warehouse development is a fast-growing trend in the highway corridors of Pennsylvania and New Jersey, given the proximity to New York City and Philadelphia.

New warehouse construction has grown 8 percent in the Lehigh Valley's Interstate 78 "submarket" since Jan. 1, making it one of the fastest-growing markets in the United States, according to the 2016 Mid-Year Industrial Logistics & Transportation report recently released by commercial real estate services company Colliers International Group Inc. Colliers also says new activity and anticipated deals should result in a higher volume of warehouse transactions in the second half of 2016.

Some critics say warehousing provides fewer and lower paying jobs than other types of development while adding more trucks to the streets.

But advocates for the Bethlehem projects say the warehouses are well-suited for the former Steel land due to its location near the widened Route 412 and Interstate 78. It is also located in remote areas of the brownfield that would be difficult to attract other types of businesses.

Source: The Morning Call