Dallas real estate firm Crow Holdings is seeking approval for a large new warehouse that would be built on the former 440th Air Reserve Base at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport.
According to a Wednesday press release from CBRE, Crow Holdings is nine months into studying the potential for the 288,000-square-foot shipping center. It is pitched as a cheaper and less congested option to moving cargo out of Chicago O’Hare International Airport, and a way to expand Milwaukee Mitchell’s shipping capacity.
The CBRE release said that, pending approvals from the airport, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and U.S. Air Force, the project could be completed in the second half of 2024. Milwaukee Mitchell airport spokesman Harold Mester responded to questions with an email saying instead of selling the land, the county and airport would sign a ground lease for Crow Holdings to develop the building.Dubbed the “South Cargo Logistics Hub,” the new building would be along the College Avenue side of the airport and have 74 loading docks and 99 stalls for truck trailers. Interior spaces could be renovated for tenants’ needs.
The redevelopment would mark a major transformation for the firmer 440th Air Reserve base. The 102-acre property was given to Milwaukee County in 2010 after the base's operations ended. The county has since worked to lease its multiple smaller buildings to airport-related businesses. The proposal by Crow Holdings, which has $24 billion in real estate assets under management, would represent a more intense use of the property for shipping.