Site Selector Newsletter - Winter 2010

Saft Brings Advanced Manufacturing Plant to Jacksonville

Saft America, a French-based manufacturer of lithium-ion technology, selected Jacksonville for a new $200 million plant that will build advanced lithium-ion cells and batteries for aviation, smart grid support, broadband backup power, energy storage for renewable energy and military hybrid vehicles.

Jacksonville was one of several cities under consideration for this project, ultimately providing the most cost effective location. "We see an increasing demand for our advanced lithium-ion technology in the United States and elsewhere in the coming years, and it is important for us to have a cost competitive domestic manufacturing base for that technology," said John Searle, Saft's CEO.

The plant is being built on a 12-acre parcel at Cecil Commerce Center, which will create nearly 300 high-wage jobs in the first phase. “The City of Jacksonville looks forward to having Saft America Inc. as a strong community partner at Cecil and is eager to see their development of lithium-ion cells and batteries that will help address the nation’s energy needs,” said Jacksonville Mayor John Peyton. “This truly was a collaborative effort with local, state and federal officials working together to attract this international company to Jacksonville and I greatly appreciate all of the hard work to strengthen Jacksonville’s position as the ideal location for their battery plant.”

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Growth Continues for Logistics Industry 

Jacksonville and the First Coast have quickly become one of the Southeast's foremost locations for logistics companies. Because Jacksonville is the western most city on the Eastern Seaboard, our location provides us with direct access to almost 50 million consumers in the Southeast. Our rail, air, port and road capabilities make us a leading international center for trade and logistics. In fact, our region was designated America's Logistics Center last year.

Distribution center activity has been at an all-time high for our region. With 60 million square feet of existing distribution space in Northeast Florida, recent projects added 6.5 million square feet of new space.

• Georgia Pacific leased a 575,000 square foot distribution facility at Westlake Industrial Park.
• Unilever built a 772,000 square foot distribution center at Westlake Industrial Park.
• Sears opened a new 815,000 square foot appliance distribution facility at Northpoint Industrial Park.
• Volkswagen of America opened a 260,000 square foot parts distribution center at Perimeter Industrial Parkway.
• Dr. Pepper Cadbury Schweppes leased a 601,500 square foot distribution facility on the northwest side of Jacksonville.
• Samsonite expanded to an 800,000 square foot distribution center at Imeson Industrial Park.
• Wal-Mart is preparing to build an 800,000 square foot distribution facility in Putnam County.
• Bridgestone Firestone opened a one million square foot tire distribution facility at Cecil Commerce Center.

There are also a number of possible sites for future development across the region including:

• ProLogis has additional land available at Westlake Industrial Park for development.
• Johnson Development has additional land available at Westlake Industrial Park.
• Jackson-Shaw has an 800-acre business park planned in Baker County.
• Schafer Development is planning two industrial parks in Jacksonville.

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Regional Developments Support Logistics Industry Strength

In addition to strong distribution center activity and future development sites, our region focused on other areas including port growth, river deepening, military logistics, interstate enhancements and outreach programs.

• JAXPORT began its first port service from Asia with Mitsui and TraPac, which will soon be followed by Hanjin. Containerized cargo at the port grew eight percent in 2009, with projections for continued long-term growth in containerized cargo as the global economy recovers and new facilities come online at the port.
• We are moving forward with plans to deepen the St. Johns River, which will allow post-Panamax ships to maneuver easily to the port.
• The military remains one of the key assets to our region. This year alone we gained an additional 2,500 Navy positions with the relocation of the P-3 Orion planes from Brunswick Maine to Naval Air Station Jacksonville.
• The new interchange at I-10 and Cecil Commerce Center is now open and construction of State Road 9B is moving forward, which will provide outstanding access between Duval and St. Johns County.
• Last year we launched an aggressive new outreach program to find new business prospects and took 25 Cornerstone members to Atlanta in December to meet with site consultants and corporate executives. This year we have an outreach mission planned for New York and Boston.

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Logistics and Distribution Labor Market Analysis Underway

Nearly 500,000 people live within the 30 minute non-exempt employee commute zone surrounding Cecil Commerce Center and almost 1.3 million live in the 60 minute zone, which is equivalent to the entire population of the Jacksonville metropolitan area. Cornerstone and its partners engaged Global Location Partners (GLP), comprising Wadley-Donovan-Gutshaw Consulting and Biggins Lacy Shapiro & Co., to gauge the capability of the labor market around Cecil Commerce Center, and the region in general. GLP projects a pool of more than 10,300 prospective, experienced applicants within 30 minutes commuting distance of Cecil, with an overall applicant-to-hire ratio of 94:1. If a new distribution center were to start hiring in our region this ratio would provide a sufficient cushion for the labor force to remain capable of sustaining additional new investments. In addition, area employers regularly commend the level of productivity within the workforce and find the overall work ethic to be strong. For more information, contact Mike Breen, Cornerstone Project Manager, at michael.breen@jacksonvillechamber.org.

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Available Industrial Properties

NorthPort Logistics Center
11530 New Berlin Road
Jacksonville, FL 32226

• Total square feet: 872,627
• Lease rate: $4.50/sf
• Ceiling height: 32 feet
• 2.5 miles from new Mitsui Container Terminal at JAXPORT
• Foreign Trade Zone location and LEED certified building

Developer
Oakmont Industrial Group

Leasing Agent
John Richardson and Bryan Bartlett
Grubb & Ellis Phoenix Realty Group
(904) 630-6375

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President's Court
12400 Presidents Court
Jacksonville, FL 32220

• Total square feet: 400,000
• Lease rate: $4.25/sf
• Ceiling height: 30 feet
• Located within Norfolk Southern's Westlake Industrial Park

Developer
Laney & Duke

Leasing Agent
Jeff Nelson
CB Richard Ellis
(904) 630-9359

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ProLogis Park Westlake Building I
Pritchard Road
Jacksonville, FL 32219

• Total square feet: 486,400
• Ceiling height: 32 feet
• LEED Certified Building

Developer
ProLogis

Leasing Agent
Nathan Rogers
CB Richard Ellis
(904) 630-6375

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Nassau - Blue Linx
591 Gene Lasserre Blvd.
Yulee, FL 32097

• Total square feet: 479,951
• Lease rate: $3.25/sf
• Ceiling height: 25 feet
• Rail access on site

Leasing Agent
Bob Selton
Colliers Dickinson
(904) 358-1206

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Palatka Property LLC
Putnam - 160 Comfort Road
Palatka, FL 32178

• Total square feet: 402,177
• Lease rate: $1.99-$2.99/sf
• Ceiling height: 20 feet
• Rail adjacent to site
• Complete renovation

Leasing Agent
Alex McCoy
Putnam County Chamber of Commerce
(386) 328-1503

Baker, Clay, Duval, Flagler, Nassau, Putnam and St. Johns Counties
3 Independent Drive • Jacksonville Fl 32202 • 904.366.6639
bizrelo@jacksonvillechamber.org • www.expandinjax.com
Where the Future Leads®