Facility Will Add More Than $73 Million To Johnston County’s Economic Output
BENSON – Edgewater Ventures, a Raleigh-based commercial real estate investment and development firm with nearly 2.7 million square-feet of existing assets, will build a 501,120 square-foot Class A distribution facility on Halmin Road in close proximity to the Interstate 40 and Interstate 95 interchange in Benson. The company’s $40 million investment will be the initial development of what will ultimately result in nearly 1.1 million square-feet of Class A industrial space that will be known as Crosspoint Logistics Center.
At just over 500,000 square-feet, the first phase will be the largest speculative industrial facility ever constructed within the Raleigh-Durham MSA. Company projections indicate that the facility could employ as many as 300 workers after it becomes operational in the first quarter of 2023. The second phase would more than double Crosspoint’s square footage and workforce.
Monday morning, Johnston County’s Board of Commissioners approved an economic development incentives grant in support of Crosspoint Logistics Center. The facility will add $73,351,891 in annual output to the county’s economy, according to an economic impact study by economist Michael Walden, PhD.
During the public hearing, officials said the distribution facility could create up to 300 new jobs with an average salary over the current Johnston County average wage of $43,000.
“We continue to see steady, shared growth throughout Johnston County as we look forward to the development of Crosspoint Logistics Center in Benson,” said R.S. “Butch” Lawter Jr., chairman of the Johnston County Board of Commissioners. “This project will help expand the County’s economic footprint and bolster growth along the I-95 corridor.”
With visibility from Interstate 95 off Morgan Road at Highway 50, Crosspoint Logistics Center will feature best-in-class construction capable of accommodating modern distribution requirements including a minimum 40’ clear height, 65’ speed bays, 50’ x 54’ column spacing, 185’ truck courts and ample trailer storage.
With offices in Raleigh and Wilmington, Edgewater Ventures acquires and develops industrial, office, multifamily and mixed-use real estate across the Carolinas. It is adding significantly to its portfolio in Wilmington and the Triangle, with a focus on distribution space. Supply-chain adjustments in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic have placed a premium on high-quality distribution centers. In the third quarter of last year, the Triangle’s vacancy rate for warehouse space was just 2.2 percent, according to the Triangle Business Journal.
”We’re extremely excited to announce this project in the Town of Benson and Johnston County,” said Chris Norvell, lead industrial partner with Edgewater Ventures. “It’s an incredible location at the I-40 and I-95 interchange that we expect to attract companies looking for direct accessibility to the entire eastern seaboard and multiple Southeastern ports.”
In addition to its leadership in advanced manufacturing, construction, biopharma, retail and agribusiness, Johnston County’s geography, infrastructure and workforce are ideal for distribution and logistics operations. Crosspoint Logistics Center, for example, will sit just minutes from the junction of I-40 and I-95. The property’s tenants will have convenient reach to the Triangle’s growing consumer market and the ports of Charleston, Norfolk and Wilmington. Sysco, the wholesale food distributor, and medical device company Beckton Dickinson are among the major U.S. companies with large distribution operations in Johnson County.
“This project brings additional industrial diversification and opportunity to Johnston County’s economy and labor market,” said Chris Johnson, director of the Johnston County Economic Development Office. “It’s exciting to see a high-quality developer like Edgewater Ventures investing so aggressively in Benson, a community that is poised for continued success as American businesses reconsider supply chains and look to build sustainable links to consumers now that the pandemic is behind us. Congratulations to the company and the community on today’s great news.”
Once fully operational, Crosspoint Logistics Center will have a significant fiscal impact, generating more than $795,000 in annual tax revenues to municipal and county governments in Johnston County, according to the analysis by Dr. Walden, the William Neal Reynolds Distinguished Professor Emeritus at North Carolina State University.
