As a developer specializing in transportation infrastructure, CenterPoint Properties has held many groundbreakings, but one on April 17 at 135 Railroad Ave. in Northlake stood out to Brian McKiernan, their senior vice president.
Soon, McKiernan said, a 225,000-square-foot “state-of-the-art logistics facility” will be The Custom Companies’ new Northlake home, describing a “commitment to stay in Northlake and stay with CenterPoint Properties” in “a premier location.”
“I want to thank The Custom Companies for wanting to stay here; for providing the jobs,” Northlake Mayor Jeffrey Sherwin said.
The Custom Companies Chief Executive Officer Perry Mandera said that after 26 years headquartered in Northlake, he knows the local community and is eager to stay as his company grows. The previous Northlake location was at 317 Lake St.
“When you see the news and hear about last mile” and other trends, that’s what The Custom Companies does, McKiernan says.
Truck, rail and air transportation is “the economic engine that’s driving how we get what we do,” McKiernan said, adding that he’s honored to “help Northlake retain a great client; a great citizen like The Custom Companies.”
Sherwin described the history of the site, which was a golf course in the 1930s and an electronics manufacturing center in the 1950s.
“Our motto is ‘your success is our success,’ ” Sherwin said, so when companies choose Northlake, “our building department gets you going right away.”
Mandera said that Sherwin and others made the decision to grow in Northlake an easier one.
“His history, his legacy of what he’s created in Northlake is incredible for business,” Mandera said. “It’s easy to do business in Northlake.”
As the length of trailer trucks increased from an average of 40 feet to 53 feet, Mandera said their new warehouse will be designed for the present and the future.
“The new configuration of the warehouse is going to make us immensely efficient,” he said, bringing about 500 full-time and more part-time jobs.
Mandera anticipates a fourth-quarter 2019 move into the new facility, which is located near O’Hare airport, railroad lines and three major highways, he added.
CenterPoint Properties hired Premier Design + Build Group to create a facility for The Custom Companies’ future.
Executive Vice President and Director of Construction Mark Melone also described Northlake as “very helpful, very collaborative in their approach and very timely in everything they do,” creating a “positive dynamic.”
Melone said Premier Design + Build already has experience redesigning the nearby modern facility for the Dr Pepper Snapple Group in Northlake.
Now, more than 200 construction jobs will be created.
“This building is designed to accommodate modern trucking in terms of the dock positions,” Melone said, with “137 dock positions to bring in trucks quickly.”
Modern design features ensure that “there’s substantial improvement in the energy efficiency of the building,” Melone said, such as light-emitting diode (LED) lighting. Over time, Melone said this results in “a return on the investment with long-term savings for the facility.”
Brokers Darwin Realty and Cushman & Wakefield, architect Cornerstone Architects, and civil engineer SPACECO Inc. are also partners in the building efforts.