A large site near the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Airport is moving into the review stage for a statewide funding program aiming to create shovel-ready sites for companies seeking expansion.
The program – the Kentucky Product Development Initiative – financially supports upgrading infrastructure on industrial sites around the state in hopes of spurring more economic activity in the area.
Currently, there is $68.8 million worth of funding available during the initiative’s second round. A total of 45 counties across Kentucky are in consideration for second-round funding.
The 321-acre site in Boone County, located to the west of CVG off North Bend Road, will be the future home of Airpark Logistics 237. Plans for the logistics campus feature three warehouses with a combined square footage of 1.45 million square feet.
Commercial real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield is advertising leasing information for each of the three buildings on their website. Construction on the buildings is expected to be completed by 2025, according to the listing.
“Upon full development, this site is estimated to create more than 2,000 direct and spin-off jobs for the region for a total annual payroll of $121 million,” Boone County Judge/Executive Gary Moore said in a press release.
Site Selection Group, a third-party real estate advisory firm based in Dallas, was hired by the state to evaluate the KPDI applications. The firm considers multiple factors during the selection process, including workforce availability, access to infrastructure, and information on costs associated with the development. Funding approval recommendations will be made at a future Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority meeting in the coming months.
“We are proud to share that this site in Northern Kentucky has been approved to move to the next stage in the KPDI program,” BE NKY Growth Partnership CEO Lee Crume said. “Having sites ready for corporate location decision-making is critical to our economic development work and continuing to grow our economy and prosperity in Northern Kentucky with good-paying jobs.”
Last month, the KEDFA approved $3.6 million worth of KPDI funds for the North Cargo Village project at CVG. The money will finance the construction of three cargo forwarding facilities, three freighter facilities, and a sorting facility on the north side of CVG’s campus. The facilities will replace a vacant rental car lot.
The North Cargo Village would allow CVG to store large freight like cars before shipment. Amazon and DHL, the two largest shipping companies operating out of CVG, primarily focus on the express shipping of smaller packages. The development of the North Cargo Village would serve as a complement to those services.
