Industrial Trends

Are Conditions Right for a U.S. Multistory Comeback?

On April 10, 2017, logistics real estate company Prologis broke ground on a three-story, 589,615 square foot multistory fulfillment center in South Seattle. Billed by the company as the first multistory warehouse in the United States, the project – Georgetown Crossroads – is similar to multistory distribution facilities dotting parts of Asia and Europe. 

The West Coast arrival of multistory warehousing raises the question of whether this is a singular exception to the standard U.S. approach or the beginning of a trend. Either way, it is worth noting that global logistics real estate companies are increasingly opting to go up rather than out, returning to the long-gone days when multiple-story warehouses and manufacturing plants were commonplace. 

Areas in Asia where multistory warehouses are becoming more common, especially in densely populated cities.