DALLAS—Port Logistics Realty, a Texas-based real estate company controlled by CT Realty and Xebec Realty, has begun construction on Phase 1 of Southport Logistics Park. Rob Huthnance, President of PLR Development, tells GlobeSt.com that “With more than 530 acres and 9 million square feet of planned space, Southport Logistics Park is one of the largest industrial projects of its kind under development in the country.”

The multi-phase, $500-million industrial project, is a joint venture with Diamond Realty Investments, a wholly owned subsidiary of Mitsubishi Corp.  

During the initial development phase, PLR and DRI will invest $22 million for infrastructure including a 2.5-mile interior road system, subsurface utilities, underground electrical distribution and a self-contained water distribution system with an elevated water tower. Additionally, PLR will build five buildings totaling over 3.8 million square feet in Phase 1.

The first two buildings, 1.1 million square feet and 400,000 square feet respectively, are scheduled for completion in the third quarter of 2016. The finished park, which is being designed for some of the world's largest users of distribution, logistics and e-commerce facilities, will have up to nine buildings ranging in size from 400,000 to 1.5 million square feet. 

“The activity surrounding South Dallas is a testament to both the North Texas region and the south Dallas submarket,” says Huthnance. “We are investing in an infrastructure project that is unparalleled in scope and quality and will be a meaningful differentiator within the Inland Port area of south Dallas. This, combined with our class-A buildings and premier park amenities, positions Southport Logistics Park to satisfy the distribution needs of Fortune 1000 companies doing business here.” 

He tells GlobeSt.com that he anticipates that “the park's proximity to the Union Pacific Intermodal rail yard and the second largest Fedex hub in the U.S., combined with the Class-A buildings and quality amenities will draw logistics and e-commerce users to the project.”

Wilmer Mayor Casey Burgess adds that "The park's location in Wilmer offers an excellent logistics advantage for future tenants and we anticipate a big, positive economic impact for the Wilmer area."

Located within the Inland Port area of southern Dallas County in Wilmer, Texas, Southport Logistics Park is approximately 10 miles south of Downtown Dallas directly across Interstate 45 from Union Pacific's Dallas Intermodal Terminal, which accepts more than 1,000 shipping containers daily from the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach for transportation to distribution centers throughout the region.

“Southport's proximity to the Union Pacific Intermodal rail yard and the second largest FedEx hub in the United States are critical pieces of global supply chain infrastructure that offer a tremendous transportation cost advantage and will draw logistics and e-commerce users to the Southport project,” said Randy Kendrick, CEO of PLR and owner of Xebec Realty. 

Watty Watson, chairman of PLR and CEO of CT Realty, says “The greater Dallas-Fort Worth market saw over 16 million square feet of net absorption in 2014 and over 6 million square feet of absorption in Q1 2015. One of the drivers to that growth is the containerized cargo business arriving from the west coast via BNSF and Union Pacific Rail Lines.”

Val Achtemeier, Josh McArtor, and Ryan Thornton of CBRE together with James Scott of CBRE Capital Advisors led the capital markets effort which resulted in the DRI/PLR joint venture and the balance of capital structure, including construction loan. Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers, acting on behalf of a Cornerstone-managed fund, participated in the capital structure of Phase I. Kacy Jones and John Hendricks of CBRE will handle leasing.