Graham & Company Begins Phase II of Airport Distribution Center

Graham & Company recently began Phase II of its Airport Distribution Center in the Jetplex Industrial Park, a 4,000-acre park owned by the Huntsville-Madison County Airport Authority. Phase II will encompass a 208,031-square-foot warehouse facility that mirrors the first building, which was completed in July 2007. That building is currently leased to Navistar Diesel of Alabama, which uses the facility to store parts for the company’s two engine plants located in the Jetplex.

Although the second phase is being built on a speculative basis – meaning without any tenant commitments – Jeff Wilke, Vice President, Graham & Company, is confident despite today’s risky economy. According to Wilke, “The first phase of the Airport Distribution Center was well received by the economic development community and provided a differentiator given that the largest speculative building prior to that in North Alabama was in the 100,000-square-foot range. The national economy has hit a low spot, but when the capital markets loosen their extremely tight lending requirements, Huntsville will be ready for takeoff." Wilke figures this timeline to be around the middle of this year.

Phase II of the Airport Distribution Center is slated for completion in the spring with an estimated price tag of $10 to 11 million. The contractor for Phase II is Cooper Construction, and the architect is Designform. Graham & Company serves as the project's primary developer but has additional investors from the Birmingham area. Wilke said the company has the option to buy 34 acres north of the Airport Distribution Center in the Jetplex, which would accommodate up to 453,000 square feet of warehouse space. In addition to developing the Airport Distribution Center, Graham & Company has leased or sold more than 10 properties in the Jetplex over the past few years.