December 4, 2024 | Flint Commerce Center in De Soto is ready to welcome tenants after construction finished on a 1 million-square-foot distribution center.Contegra Construction Co. completed work on Building C. Prairie Village-based Flint Development is developing the 370-acre, $390 million industrial park near the intersection of 103rd Street and Edgerton Road. At full buildout, Flint Commerce Center will include roughly 4.7 million square feet of Class A industrial space across six buildings.

Building C at 10200 Edgerton Road was built with tilt-up concrete panels with a 40-foot clear height. The cross-dock distribution center features 98 dock doors with four drive-thru doors and the capacity to expand up to 168 dock doors. Parking is available for 515 cars and 251 trailers. The industrial building also includes a hazardous materials storage room with a dedicated outdoor air system to precondition outdoor air brought into the facility.

In April 2022, the De Soto City Council issued $100 million worth of industrial revenue bonds (IRB) to provide a tax abatement on construction materials for the first building.

The distribution center sits to the south of Kansas Highway 10 and less than a mile west of Panasonic’s $4 billion manufacturing facility at Astra Enterprise Park.

The Japanese battery manufacturer also is the first tenant to occupy space in the new industrial park. In August 2023, Panasonic signed a lease to take over 509,760 square feet in Building C.

North Kansas City-based Wagner Logistics will provide Panasonic with warehousing services, as well as storage, inventory management and distribution support at the Flint Commerce Center. Panasonic is ramping up hiring efforts as it prepares to begin electric-vehicle battery production in March.

Mark Long and John Hassler of Newmark Zimmer are handling leasing for Flint Commerce Center. Currently, 509,760 square feet of space, including 2,500 square feet of office space, is available for lease in Building C. Representatives from Newmark Zimmer declined to disclose the lease rate.

The development team includes Flint Development, Contegra Construction Co., Newmark Zimmer, Davidson Architecture and Engineering, BHC Civil Engineering & Surveying, PKMR Engineers, Wallace Engineering and CFS Engineers.

Article courtesy of Kansas City Business Journal