Ford of Canada will be the anchor tenant in a coming development in Eastern Ontario along the Highway 417 corridor. It will set up a parts DC on the site that will service Eastern Ontario and Quebec.
The DC will be part of a three-million-square-foot facility in Casselman, which is about 55 km from Ottawa, and about 50 km from Cornwall, on the 401.
Ford’s distribution centre will occupy approximately half of the square footage of the new development. The initial building, which will be built by real estate developer Rosefellow and its partner Bertone Development, is expected to exceed 500,000 square feet.
“Companies are increasingly demanding larger facilities to house their operations. The average size of the floor space that tenants are asking for is currently 175,000 square feet,” said Mike Jager, co-founder, Rosefellow. “That is more than double what they were looking for five years ago. Technologies are advancing faster than ever, and we must offer our clients access to them. We are proud that Ford of Canada has chosen to work with us.”
Projected completion February 2023
Landscaping work began this summer on the job site which should be active until February 2023.
Ford’s facility will be built to minimize its carbon footprint. These range from the installation of charging bays to facilitate the use of electric cars, to a white roof which will minimize energy consumption, a motion detector lighting system, and more.
The Municipality of Casselman is also assessing a study related to the development of the southern portion of the 417, which highlights the benefits of equipping this area with municipal infrastructure to accommodate other similar projects.
Rosefellow and Bertone Development already own the land on which the new DC will be built. They have made a commitment to the Municipality of Casselman and The Nation Municipality to acquire land at the east and west of the facilities which are being built for Ford of Canada to further develop the area.
The additional 1.5 million square feet will enable Rosefellow and Bertone Development to build additional buildings. An initial 130,000 square foot facility will be developed on the Eastern lot portion. A second 400,000 square feet building will follow on the western lot portion. Future tenants will be announced at a later date.
Rosefellow was founded by two former competitors in Montreal’s real estate industry who later became friends and then business partners. Its designs, builds and manages residential, commercial and industrial properties that constantly push the boundaries of sustainable innovation.
Bertone Development Corporation is a real estate investment and development company based in Montreal.
Rosefellow and Bertone Development currently already manage 8.5 million square feet of developable land, including 3.2 million in Quebec and Ontario.
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