Those deals follow the Will County board's unanimous approval of enterprise zone designation for the REIT's 1,248-acre CenterPoint Intermodal Center in Elwood, IL, the site of the former Joliet Arsenal. Besides sparing the largest industrial owner in the market from paying sales tax on construction materials, tenants in the massive industrial park will not have to pay the 6% state levy on telecommunications and utilities, he says.

However, CenterPoint's next ventures are likely to include building more than 300,000 sf of manufacturing space on the city's Northwest Side, where the city and state is turning over excess property. CenterPoint will be the designated developer for the project, Mullen says.

Meanwhile, 230 acres at the Tri-State Tollway interchange at Route 173 near the state line is being annexed to the village of Wadsworth for development of an industrial park that will be visible from I-94 for a stretch of more than a mile, Mullen says. It is in a Lake County submarket where "the investor demand is unbelievable," notes chief investment officer Paul Ahern, but where communities don't usually welcome industrial developers with open arms.

It also would augment CenterPoint's growing presence in southeast Wisconsin, Mullen notes. "It kind of gives us a veritable lock on that corridor," he adds.

However, the REIT's 2.2-million-sf Wisconsin portfolio may soon be recycled, CenterPoint officials indicate. "Milwaukee seems to be on a lot of people's radar screens," says chief financial officer Paul S. Fisher.

Instant Insights /

CenterPoint Drawing City, Wadsworth Projects

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