Corporate Campus on Target
Corporate Campus on Target
Thursday, March 5, 2009 - Indianapolis Star
March 5, 2009- Paraphrased Article
By: Eric North
Noblesville officials feel they have the hot development spot in Central Indiana amid the economic recession. The Corporate Campus is bisected by recently upgraded 146th Street, one of Hamilton County's main east-west arteries. The mixed-use development contains business, commercial and residential projects. It is just this mix that attracted some of its first occupants.
The city invested $21 million in infrastructure to create access to its 280 acres of Saxony, off Exit 10 of the interstate. When complete, Saxony will feature 1 million square feet of retail space, 3.5 million square feet of office/industrial space and 1,300 homes in Fishers and Noblesville.
"It was an excellent location for our employees," said David Helmer, whose company is in Saxony at a site on Bergen Boulevard, just north of 146th Street. Helmer Inc. manufactures capital equipment, such as refrigerators and centrifuges, for a global life-sciences customer. The company, which has been in Noblesville for 21 years, began scouting around a few years ago for more space to expand. Helmer said he wanted to build a production facility to meet his company's specific high-tech needs. He researched other locations but eventually purchased land just off Bergen Boulevard. He then worked with a developer to construct a 72,000-square-foot facility that now is the center of activity for his 137 workers. "Our employees were already in Noblesville, so geographically, this was a prime location and provides prime transport via the interstate," he said.
Access to I-69 and I-465 also caught the eye of executives at Perkins Logistics. Perkins, whose 300 trucks and drivers move specialized freight around the country, had outgrown offices and facilities on Indianapolis' Westside. Like Helmer, Perkins officials sought somewhere to stretch their legs. "The ease of access for our drivers to come in and out of the facility from I-69 and even from I-465 caught our attention," said Perkins President Greg Maiers. The company and its 60 employees are now based in a $5.2 million facility that spans 35,000 square feet on an 8-acre parcel of the campus. Other companies relocating to the Corporate Campus include Weaver Popcorn and Japanese-owned SMC Corp., a 500-employee factory-equipment maker, which plans to hire 275 more after completing its move. Maiers said big selling points in locating on the Corporate Campus are its retail and hospitality components.
A new hotel, Cambria Suites, also is taking shape on the campus in Saxony. The hotel will include 133 oversized suites and could employ 30 people when fully operational in late July. "It is the best area in the Indianapolis region," said David Crisafi, owner of the Noblesville Cambria. "It is one of the best areas in the Midwest." The hotel, Crisafi said, will include a bar and shopping for guests and will cater to the more-upscale traveler or business executive.
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