ViaSat searched 51 sites in six counties before Ben Logue, a senior vice president at Atlanta-based Colliers Cauble, found the local site. "We scoured the metro Atlanta area for the right location and Breckinridge proved to be the perfect fit for ViaSat," Logue says. The park offers the high-tech amenities required by ViaSat's office and manufacturing operations, "as well as great access for its growing employee base," the broker adds. ViaSat has a staff of 214 workers.
The first phase of the Gwinnett County development includes a two-story, 63,000-sf, class A office building; an 80,000-sf facility for antenna engineering, fabrication and manufacturing; and an outdoor antenna staging pad to enable the buildup and testing of completed antenna systems. The remaining 3.5 acres, reserved for future expansion in the second phase of the development, will be tentatively used for employee recreation facilities.
ViaSat is also negotiating for a site in Jackson County that would replace the antenna group's pattern range in suburban Norcross. ViaSat first came to Gwinnett county in 2000 when the company acquired the satellite networking and satellite antenna businesses of Scientific-Atlanta.
Bob Rota, ViaSat director of Facilities Support Services, credits Gwinnett County's Economic Development team and Geographic Information Systems Department in helping the company find the right site.
"ViaSat has been designing and manufacturing antenna systems in Atlanta since the early 1960s," says John Zlogar, vice president and general manager of Satellite Ground Systems at Via Sat. "This is our home and this new facility shows our strong commitment to Atlanta, and to our continued growth as a key supplier to our customers."
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