This site plan shows a five-building warehouse complex that DHL plans to build in Franklin at Graham Road and Paul Hand Boulevard, as well as the extension of Essex Drive the company has promised to build as part of the development.
Photos provided by city of Franklin
German logistics company DHL plans to invest $258 million to build five industrial buildings on Franklin’s far northside.
The first warehouse would likely start construction later this year on a 272-acre parcel bordered by Paul Hand Boulevard to the north, Graham Road to the east, Essex Drive to the south and railroad tracks to the west, said Matt Yang, DHL director of real estate solutions.
The buildings will total about 3.8 million square feet and will be built to suit the needs of DHL clients who are looking for a presence in the central Indiana market, Yang said.
This project will add to the company’s presence in central Indiana, where it serves 16 customers, maintains 8.5 million square feet of warehouses and employs 2,100. In Johnson County, DHL recently purchased a 980,000-square-foot warehouse to bring estimated 676 jobs to Whiteland. The company also owns the Franklin Energizer facility, which was Johnson County’s first million-square-foot building.
DHL was unanimously approved for a 10-year tax abatement for the first building by the Franklin Common Council on Wednesday. The building will be 1.06 million square feet and cost about $67 million to construct. The company is expected to save an estimated $6.8 million, while paying $7.03 million in taxes to the city during the abatement period, according to a tax estimate for the project.
This land was previously approved for a different tax abatement in May 2022, and it was planned to be developed by Cincinnati real estate developer Al Neyer. As part of the abatement resolution for DHL, the resolution awarding the abatement to Al Neyer was repealed.
Al Neyer pulled out of the development because of the economy, not because of any actions by the city, said Dana Monson, Franklin’s community development specialist.
“Al Neyer had every intention of going through creating a pretty unique campus and doing some work,” Monson said. “But unfortunately, inflation and the economy and just the scalability of their company just was not going to allow them to continue with this project.”
The city’s economic development team had been working with DHL to find a suitable site in Franklin since February of last year and offered up this parcel after Al Neyer’s project fell through, Monson said.
DHL plans to invest $9 million to develop the site within the first year and $258 million over the next five years. The initial investment includes adding utilities and road infrastructure, with about $3 million to extend Essex Drive from the current stub street to Paul Hand Boulevard, plus $2 million that is being given to the city to help pay for upgrades to Paul Hand Boulevard, said Mayor Steve Barnett.
Al Neyer had previously committed to providing $5 million to develop these streets and it was important to Barnett to keep this commitment with the new developer, he said. The road needs to be upgraded for the uptick in semi-traffic with be added with this development and others planned along Paul Hand Boulevard in both Franklin and Whiteland.
“I’m trying to get every nickel, dime and dollar we can from investors who want to invest in Franklin,” Barnett said. “If they come here, and they want something for nothing that’s not for us.”
City officials are also planning to build a roundabout at Paul Hand Boulevard and Graham Road to make it easier for both the semis and area homeowners to get around, Barnett said.
The buildings are expected to be built over the next five years according to the specifications of clients they find for the space, Yang said. The preliminary site plan shows the million-square-foot building will be built first, to be followed by three buildings of about 638,000 square feet and one 800,820-square-foot building. The size of buildings and timing of construction will ultimately depend on the market, he said.
A working estimate of employment numbers and salaries for the first building is about 400 jobs and $90 million in payroll, Yang said. Starting wages are expected to be around $18 or $18.50 per hour with raises to $20 with experience, Monson said. Wages and job numbers will depend on what client ultimately occupies the building, Yang and Monson said.
The development will be part of DHL’s pledge to be carbon neutral by 2050. There will be initiatives in place to make the buildings carbon neutral, including roofs that are built to support solar panels, Yang said. Solar arrays aren’t currently part of the project, but they could be installed if the client requests it, he said.
