<p><strong>G</strong>etting off and on Interstate 65 in Franklin, activity east of the highway will be seen for hundreds of acres.</p><p>Two developers have secured annexations near the interchange that will likely bring hundreds of new jobs and several warehouses, some as large as 1 million square feet.</p><p>More than 500 acres were annexed into the city, with half of it already rezoned to light industrial. Two logistics developments planned at the site will expand Franklin’s eastern border and begin a transformation of the area.</p>[sc:text-divider text-divider-title="Story continues below gallery" ]Click here to purchase photos from this gallery<p>The larger development, at 433 acres, is proposed by Sunbeam Development Corp., a Florida-based company that built the county’s first 1-million-square-foot building in Franklin and drew Energizer to the city.</p><p>Sunbeam is back with a plan to build I-65 South Commerce Park, a multi-building logistics complex across State Road 44 from Energizer, stretching east from Jim Black Road, with a northern border at County Road 100 North.</p><p>The company has already started the process of building its second speculative building in Franklin, set to be completed by the end of 2020. The building, situated between the I-65 north on-ramp and Jim Black Road, is already drawing interest from potential tenants, said Chad Lindley, Sunbeam’s development director.</p><p>Marketing documents indicate Sunbeam is planning up to four more large industrial buildings on a 218-acre property adjacent to Jim Black Road and State Road 44. The plan, currently, is to build around an existing building at Jim Black Road and State Road 44, though Sunbeam is open to purchasing that land too, Lindley said.</p><p>Plans are not yet available for the remaining 215 acres, but the goal is to create more of the same, he said.</p><p>Buildings could be either speculative or built to suit, depending on market interest, Lindley said. The company is marketing the buildings to several types of businesses including warehousing, light industrial and e-commerce, he said.</p><p>Once the buildings are complete, Sunbeam will have a long-term investment in Franklin, Lindley said. The company does not build then sell like some other developers, choosing to keep stake in the community, he said.</p><p>“We go above and beyond in terms of developing industrial properties. We want to build a product that will last a long time; we design them in a way that they will hopefully last forever,” Lindley said.</p><p>A 69-acre development has also been proposed by GDI Construction, an Indianapolis-based developer and construction company.</p><p>The development, dubbed I-65 South Logistics Center, will be at State Road 44 and Forest Road, next to Aisin. The company plans to invest $50 million in the city to purchase the land and build a roughly 1-million-square-foot building, said Michael Sheek, GDI’s business development director.</p><p>The GDI development will either be speculative or built to suit, depending on the market, Sheek said. GDI plans to target e-commerce and light manufacturing businesses, he said.</p><p>Like Sunbeam, Mayor Steve Barnett said GDI is planning to put down roots in Franklin. These investments show the city’s work to improve quality of life and the city’s eastern gateway is paying off, he said.</p><p>“Because we are willing to invest in ourselves, people are willing to invest here with us,” Barnett said.</p><p>Both developers received tax breaks. Each received one real property tax abatement, but will likely seek more as the projects unfold.</p><p>The city approved a 10-year $2.3 million tax break for Sunbeam’s 519,699-square-foot building in May, according to city documents. Over the course of the abatement, the city will still collect $2.7 million in taxes, city documents show.</p><p>The city also approved a seven-year $2 million tax break for GDI. Over the course of that abatement, the city will collect $1.7 million in taxes, according to city documents.</p><p>Though the abatements relieve companies of some tax obligations, Barnett said the investments are still a significant net gain for the city, which otherwise would not be collecting taxes on the properties.</p><p>“If it stays a farm field, over a 20 year period it brings in $62,000 (in taxes). With this, it will be ($6.3 million). People don’t always understand that,” Barnett said, referring to estimated tax income from the Sunbeam development.</p><p>Both abatements come with specific terms the city is requesting the developers meet. Job numbers are hard to predict because the developments are planned as shell buildings, but the city is asking the developer to attract above-average wage jobs, said Barnett and Dana Monson, Franklin’s community development specialist.</p><p>“Whatever it is we hope to see something that brings good quality jobs above the county average. We would also like to see a Fortune 500 or Fortune 100 company,” Barnett said.</p><p>Wages will also be a factor in any subsequent tax breaks that may be issued for the properties, city documents say.</p><p>The two active abatements also call for the developers to attract diverse businesses to the interchange.</p><p>“We would like to see diversity of companies and sectors. There will always be upturns and downtowns in the market, so having a variety (in the logistics park) will help support the city’s economic stability,” Monson said.</p><p>The two developments could be the first of more industrial or logistics developments at the interchange, Barnett said. The city’s plan for the area includes further development on the east side of I-65, and filling the eastside gateway with additional restaurants, he said. A Culver’s opened recently west of the interchange, and a Starbucks and Taco Bell weren’t too far ahead.</p><p>“The long-term master plan goal is to keep going north and east as developers buy more land,” he said.</p><p>Existing businesses and commuters will also see some changes at the interchange.</p><p>Cooper Tire the first quarter of next year will move out of its Franklin facility to a larger building in Whiteland, leaving the city with an 800,000-square-foot vacancy, Monson said.</p><p>Interstate Warehousing, a cold storage warehouse at the interchange, is also planning to expand its building in 2021 and build a second in 2022, Barnett said.</p><p>Several projects are already in the works to prepare the area for development, as both GDI and Sunbeam plan to start construction by spring, he said.</p><p>The city will spend $750,000 this year to improve Forest Road, with plans for construction next year on Jim Black Road, Barnett said.</p><p>The city will also spend $5 million next year to upgrade sewer services to accommodate the growth, Barnett said.</p><p>The Indiana Department of Transportation plans to install traffic signals near the on- and off-ramps of I-65 next summer to alleviate traffic congestion, Barnett said.</p>
