This Amazon warehouse in Ruskin, FL is one of many the e-commerce giant has opened in recent years.

MIAMI—The ink is drying on Amazon's largest lease in Miami. The e-commerce giant leased 91 acres at Carrie Meek International Business Park, a speculative $250 million industrial project at the Opa-locka Airport.

The announcement of Amazon's decision to occupy the industrial park comes just months after Foundry Commercial revealed details on its public/private partnership with The Carrie Meek Foundation. Under the partnership, the Foundation will receive a portion of all proceeds generated from the facility to offer job training to area residents, among other life-altering services, such as health care, affordable housing and education. GlobeSt.com caught up with Pryce Elam, South Florida principal and president of development and investment, to get some insight into the deal in part one of this exclusive interview.

GlobeSt.com: What kinds of facilities are companies like Amazon looking for? What are the requirements?

Elam: Retailers' struggle to create “omni-channel” marketing have created a huge demand for warehouse facilities. That demand is in addition to the traditional distribution demands that have always existed. For retailers, it is becoming less important where the sale is made, as long as the sale is made, whether that be in a traditional store or over the internet, and that is driving the logistics behind being able to get that sold product into the hands of the consumer.

In many cases, warehouses are in part supplanting and in part supporting existing retail showrooms. To be competitive, retailers must now manage the speed at which they can get the product to the consumer and the cost of getting it there, all of which has created a thriving demand for industrial space.

There is no company like Amazon. They are truly in a class by themselves. But we do see other companies trying to keep up and remain competitive. The requirements are not terribly different from traditional warehouse users, except for a greater focus on locations that are closer to the customer and have access to a good employment base.

(Will Amazon dominate the grocery store market? Here's one take.)

GlobeSt.com: What were the most interesting aspects of the Amazon deal?

Elam: This will be a state-of-the-art logistics facility with the most modern technology and robotics, and it will be one of the largest private projects every built in Miami-Dade. But to me, the most interesting aspect of this is how it will impact the community.

This facility will create at least 1,000 jobs in a part of Miami-Dade that really needs it. The positive human impact of this will be significant. And you cannot imagine how hard Commissioner Jordan, The Mayor and his staff, and the Carrie Meek Foundation worked to first create the concept and then make it happen.

In today's overly-political world, you don't have many things—in fact anything that I can think of—that we all can agree is good for our community. But this is one project that everyone will benefit from.

The county will get millions of dollars in an increase in its tax base and ground rent payments from this project, there will be at least 1,000 new jobs created in this community, and the Carrie Meek Foundation will be right there in the middle of it helping to prepare and connect the Miami-Dade residents to the jobs that will be created on-site. In a country where everyone seems angry at one another, this is something we all can be happy about.

GlobeSt.com: What kinds of facilities are companies like Amazon looking for? What are the requirements?

(Will Amazon dominate the grocery store market? Here's one take.)

GlobeSt.com: What were the most interesting aspects of the Amazon deal?

Instant Insights /

Behind Amazon's Biggest-Ever Miami Industrial Deal

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