Stockton, Calif., distribution center in construction

Feb. 26, 2008
Project nearing completion

Feb. 20--STOCKTON -- Atlanta-based Industrial Developments International is finishing a new distribution center and office structure near Stockton Metropolitan Airport.

General contractor Kajima Corp. is building the 508,000-square-foot tilt-up office and warehouse building on 23.5 acres at the Stockton Business Center, 1900 Zephyr St.

No tenant has been signed yet for the building, which sits near one of IDI's first Stockton projects -- a 513,778-square-foot distribution center built several years ago and bought by Cost Plus Inc. for a World Market distribution center.

Cost Plus built an additional building to the east with about the same square footage.

"The foreclosures have really dominated the headlines, but the commercial work is very steady, headed toward strong," said Steve Carrigan, economic-development director in the Stockton city manager's office.

That amount of square footage would hold between nine and 10 football fields under the roof, he said.

"If IDI has that kind of confidence, that speaks well for the future," he said.

A major decline in residential construction is causing people not to buy things, which is hurting imports, said Alan Sharp, senior vice president and regional development officer for IDI.

That affects the distribution-center sector these days, he said.

He said he expects a slowdown to last awhile longer, but he added: "Long term, Stockton looks excellent."

The company has 130 acres to develop in Stockton, he said. That means three or four very large buildings.

IDI's first Stockton project was a 200,000-square-foot production and distribution facility, also near the airport, for Crown Bolt, an importer, packager and distributor of fasteners, anchors, chain and other hardware products for the hardware and home-center industry.

Copyright (c) 2008, The Record, Stockton, Calif. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.