COLUMBUS—Strong tenant activity in this centrally-located city has encouraged a number of top developers to start breaking ground on class A distribution buildings. Just yesterday, GlobeSt.com reported that NorthPoint Development recently began to put up a 1-million-square-foot structure near Rickenbacker International Airport. And Duke Realty Corp. just became the latest builder to start a new bulk facility. Officials from the REIT announced yesterday that, along with the Columbus Regional Airport Authority and Capitol Square, Ltd. they will build a 482,300-square-foot warehouse at Rickenbacker Global Logistics Park southeast of Columbus.

In addition, INNO-PAK, LLC, a Delaware, OH-based designer, manufacturer and distributor of packaging products for the grocery and food service industries, has already agreed to lease 53% or 253,838 square feet of the new building. Duke and its partners are constructing the warehouse, which they will call Intermodal North Building 3, on a 33-acre site between Rickenbacker Pkwy. and the airport.

“Interest in Rickenbacker Global Logistics Park has grown as companies are working to identify sites that will help them reduce transportation costs by improving efficiencies,” says Art Makris, vice president of leasing and development for Duke's Columbus office. “Its US Foreign-Trade Zone status, overweight hauling designation, and rich transportation infrastructure all combine to give clients a complete package of logistics options and efficiencies.”