Officials Break Ground on Expansion
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowConstruction is underway on a $6 million distribution facility expansion in Boone County. Hachette Book Group and Indianapolis-based Duke Realty Corp. (NYSE: DRE) say the project in Lebanon Business Park should be complete in October. April 7, 2014
News Release
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Duke Realty Corporation's (Duke Realty) Indiana office has broken ground on a 218,000-square foot expansion for Hachette Book Group (HBG), a leading book publisher and distributor, in Lebanon Business Park (LBP), its 1,250-acre industrial park located just off I-65 between SR 32 and SR 39. Located at 121 N. Enterprise Blvd., the new, larger facility will increase HBG’s footprint in LBP to approximately 1.5 million square feet in two buildings.
The Hachette project is the third expansion in Lebanon Business Park in the past year by existing tenants. Purity Wholesale Grocers and CNH Global NV announced last summer that they were increasing their total square footage in the park and investing in new equipment. Purity, a distributor of products ranging from frozen food to health and beauty care, dairy, dry goods and candy, selected Duke Realty to build a new 480,000-square foot facility for them. Subsequently, the product support division of CNH Global NV, an international manufacturing company, announced the lease and fixturing of a 153,000-square foot building in LBP, raising its total presence in the park to 1.2 million square feet in three buildings.
“We are pleased that we can continue to provide Hachette with the space they need as they experience ongoing growth in their business,” said Charlie Podell, Senior Vice President of Duke Realty's Indiana operations. “HBG, similar to Purity and CNH, expressed a desired to stay in LBP because of the advantages it provides in terms of highway and rail access, as well as proximity to Chicago and the majority of the U.S. population. We were able, in each situation, to come up with viable solutions that provide our customers with the additional space they needed while remaining in the park.”
“Since we relocated our operations to LBP in 1995, we have found this to be an ideal location for the distribution of our products. Plus, Duke Realty has been very responsive to our space needs, so it only made sense to turn to them again,” said Gerry Cummings, Senior Vice President, with HBG. “The expansion of this building will enable us to continue to provide our publishing clients with superb distribution services.”
“HBG's expansion, along with those by Purity and CNH, are testament to the value of Lebanon Business Park,” said Harold 'Huck' Lewis, Mayor of Lebanon. “These three companies have chosen to expand and remain in LBP because of its abundant workforce, land for future growth, proximity to I-65, and direct rail service. The City of Lebanon is pleased with Hachette's decision to remain an employer in our community and the opportunities this expansion offers for new jobs.”
About Lebanon Business Park
Developed in 1994 in close collaboration with the city of Lebanon, Boone County and state economic developers, the Lebanon Business Park has more than 1,250 acres of land and employs more than 2,600 people annually in 6.4 million square feet of office, industrial and manufacturing space. The Lebanon Business Park was ranked the 5th largest industrial park in Central Indiana by the Indianapolis Business Journal in 2013, and boasts a number of the county's top employers.
About Duke Realty
Duke Realty owns, maintains an interest in or has under development approximately 152.6 million rentable square feet of industrial and office assets, including medical office, in 22 major U.S. metropolitan areas. Duke Realty Corporation is publicly traded on the NYSE under the symbol DRE and is listed on the S&P MidCap 400 Index. More information about Duke Realty is available at www.dukerealty.com.
Source: Duke Realty Corp.