CHICAGO—Infill locations within urban cores have become all the rage in the world of industrial development, and developers from across the US will soon get a chance to build on the largest contiguous piece of industrial land available within Chicago's city limits. Called Centreport Industrial Park, its 197 acres lie south of downtown but within minutes of several expressways, a rail line, and even port services, making it ideal for e-commerce providers or other distributors that need facilities close to Chicago's vibrant central business district. The owners of the vacant site have controlled it for years, but officials from Newmark Grubb Knight Frank made the case that now was the time to put it on the market. “Industrial development is at an all-time high, and we're seeing a tremendous demand for infill locations,” NGKF's executive managing director Kenneth Szady tells GlobeSt.com. NGKF pitched the idea of an industrial park here to the owners, and then put together a group of architects and planners to outline a proposal. The plan remains quite flexible, but NGKF, which has been appointed as the exclusive broker in the sale and marketing of the site, says Centreport can host more than one dozen state-of-the-art speculative buildings, each with about 300,000 square feet. Szady and NGKF managing director Krysti Galvin will lead the national marketing campaign on behalf of ownership. Major distribution facilities are sprouting up all along the region's expressways, says Szady. “This is probably the best time in the last 20 years for a project like this.” Amazon.com , for example, just took 746,772 square feet near I-80 at 201 Emerald Dr. in Joliet, a new speculative building, and Samsung Electronics recently agreed to occupy 383,494 square feet at 21051 W. Walter Strawn Dr. in Elwood, also within the I-80 corridor. “These are prime examples of companies that want to get closer to the city.” But this site, located on Ave. O and 116 ^th St. is actually within the Chicago city limits and nestled among I-80, I-90 and I-94. And with on-site access to the Norfolk Southern rail line and the Calumet River and Lake Calumet ports, as well as high power and fiber amenities, it can handle a wide variety of users with different size needs. “The plans are not rigid,” says Szady, and could accommodate larger users. The port facilities make the site ideal for a heavy manufacturer that needs barge traffic, and its fiber capability would suit data centers as well. Several $50 million data centers are going up in suburban Franklin Park near O'Hare Airport, he points out, and providers in that industry are running out of locations. Furthermore, food distributors in the neighborhoods adjacent to the downtown are getting replaced by high-end offices and multifamily developments, and need new facilities with great transportation options. The owners are ready to make a deal with a national developer that can tackle the whole site, form joint venture partnerships for smaller portions, or sign long-term ground leases with other users, says Szady. “We're very flexible on how we subdivide it.” Whatever is decided, he adds, “we are ready to go. We could apply for a building permit today.” The city of Chicago considers this a golden opportunity to turn a vast parcel of long-vacant land into a vibrant industrial complex that provides jobs and tax revenue. “We've got a positive, proactive city government behind us. We're not going to have fights with the alderman or any other city officials.” Szady and Galvin are confident that such an offering will attract attention from local, regional, national and multi-national users, developers and investors seeking class A industrial property in a Tier 1 market. “This is going to be one of the best industrial business parks in Chicago,” says Szady. CHICAGO—Infill locations within urban cores have become all the rage in the world of industrial development, and developers from across the US will soon get a chance to build on the largest contiguous piece of industrial land available within Chicago's city limits. Called Centreport Industrial Park, its 197 acres lie south of downtown but within minutes of several expressways, a rail line, and even port services, making it ideal for e-commerce providers or other distributors that need facilities close to Chicago's vibrant central business district. The owners of the vacant site have controlled it for years, but officials from Newmark Grubb Knight Frank made the case that now was the time to put it on the market. “Industrial development is at an all-time high, and we're seeing a tremendous demand for infill locations,” NGKF's executive managing director Kenneth Szady tells GlobeSt.com. NGKF pitched the idea of an industrial park here to the owners, and then put together a group of architects and planners to outline a proposal. The plan remains quite flexible, but NGKF, which has been appointed as the exclusive broker in the sale and marketing of the site, says Centreport can host more than one dozen state-of-the-art speculative buildings, each with about 300,000 square feet. Szady and NGKF managing director Krysti Galvin will lead the national marketing campaign on behalf of ownership. Major distribution facilities are sprouting up all along the region's expressways, says Szady. “This is probably the best time in the last 20 years for a project like this.” Amazon.com , for example, just took 746,772 square feet near I-80 at 201 Emerald Dr. in Joliet, a new speculative building, and Samsung Electronics recently agreed to occupy 383,494 square feet at 21051 W. Walter Strawn Dr. in Elwood, also within the I-80 corridor. “These are prime examples of companies that want to get closer to the city.” But this site, located on Ave. O and 116 ^th St. is actually within the Chicago city limits and nestled among I-80, I-90 and I-94. And with on-site access to the Norfolk Southern rail line and the Calumet River and Lake Calumet ports, as well as high power and fiber amenities, it can handle a wide variety of users with different size needs. “The plans are not rigid,” says Szady, and could accommodate larger users. The port facilities make the site ideal for a heavy manufacturer that needs barge traffic, and its fiber capability would suit data centers as well. Several $50 million data centers are going up in suburban Franklin Park near O'Hare Airport, he points out, and providers in that industry are running out of locations. Furthermore, food distributors in the neighborhoods adjacent to the downtown are getting replaced by high-end offices and multifamily developments, and need new facilities with great transportation options. The owners are ready to make a deal with a national developer that can tackle the whole site, form joint venture partnerships for smaller portions, or sign long-term ground leases with other users, says Szady. “We're very flexible on how we subdivide it.” Whatever is decided, he adds, “we are ready to go. We could apply for a building permit today.” The city of Chicago considers this a golden opportunity to turn a vast parcel of long-vacant land into a vibrant industrial complex that provides jobs and tax revenue. “We've got a positive, proactive city government behind us. We're not going to have fights with the alderman or any other city officials.” Szady and Galvin are confident that such an offering will attract attention from local, regional, national and multi-national users, developers and investors seeking class A industrial property in a Tier 1 market. “This is going to be one of the best industrial business parks in Chicago,” says Szady.