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AURORA, IL-Liberty Property Trust of Malvern, PA and the Sacramento-based Panattoni Development Co. LLC have separately broken ground on a total 1.34 million sf of new warehouse and distribution center space in metro Chicago. The projects have an estimated aggregate hard construction cost of $64.3 million.

Liberty has started construction on a two-building, 800,000-sf venture at its 200-acre, 1.3-million-sf Liberty Business Center in Aurora, near Interstate 88. The $40-million project equates to an average hard construction cost of $50 per sf. The first 600,000-sf spec building, being built on Bilter Road between Church and Mitchell roads, is slated for completion in fall 2006. The second 200,000-sf structure, a build-to-suit for PPG Industries, is expected to be completed in early 2007, according to Liberty vice president Don Schoenheider.

"Over the last few years, Liberty has made a significant investment in the Aurora region," Schoenheider says. "The accessibility to different modes of transportation and an abundant labor pool, make it ideal for prospective tenants." He says the two new buildings will be "an important addition" to Liberty Business Center.