LOUISVILLE—Industrial developers may be breaking ground on a large number of speculative projects, but they are also finding tenants. After preleasing 74% of the first phase of a 1.2 million square foot, two-building project at Air Commerce Business Park in Louisville to Hillsdale Furniture, Molto Properties and Verus Partners have just decided to accelerate plans and break ground on the second phase.

Phase II will consist of a 645,840 square foot cross-dock industrial facility featuring 36' clear height, trailer parking and ample car parking.

"Our expansion into the Louisville market has allowed us to capitalize on the excellent conditions for the development of quality spec industrial product that is in high demand," says Todd Naccarato, founder and senior principal of Oakbrook Terrace, IL-based Molto.

As reported in GlobeSt.com, the company, founded in 2008, has acquired millions of square feet of distribution space in Chicago suburbs like Romeoville, Joliet, New Lenox and Woodridge. It launched its second fund in late 2013 with a $100 million commitment and recently completed a 166,000 square foot building in Houston. Overall, Naccarato tells GlobeSt.com that the company will use the second fund to buy or develop about 15 properties, the majority in the Chicago area.

Louisville may not have the global reputation of Chicago, but it is one of the nation's healthiest markets. It posted a 5.6% vacancy in the third quarter of 2015 and showed more than 1.4 million square feet of positive absorption with 3.5 million square feet under construction.

Doug Butcher and Kevin Grove of CBRE are handling leasing for Molto. Pepper Construction is the general contractor on the project. Molto and Verus will complete the first phase by year-end and deliver the second building by October, 2016.