When CenterPoint Properties announced plans for a big industrial development southwest of Chicago in July 2021, pricing and availability of construction materials remained volatile more than a year into COVID-19.
The Oak Brook, Illinois-based developer decided to preorder steel and precast materials to avoid potential delays on the two-building, 2 million-square-foot-plus project within the CenterPoint Intermodal Center in Joliet and Elwood, Illinois.
That decision gained importance in early 2022, when Amazon leased all of a more than 1 million-square-foot warehouse CenterPoint had begun constructing at 4300 N. Brandon Road in Joliet. It also earned the project a CoStar Impact Award, as judged by real estate professionals familiar with the market.
Having materials on hand kept the project on track for the tenant to move in by late 2022, bringing hundreds of jobs to the area across multiple work shifts.
About the project: Early in construction, crews discovered shallow gas pipelines on the site. They overcame that obstacle by building temporary bridges during excavation. The project also includes a similar-sized warehouse at 3301 N. Brandon.
What the judges said: The project stands out for its “cost management and creative unforeseen obstacle solution,” wrote judge Ben Cleveland, an executive vice president at Stream Realty Partners.
They made it happen: CenterPoint was led in the project by Brian McKiernan, Carmine Bottigliero and Ken Osborne.
