With a permit in hand, Sam’s Club, the wholesale membership division of global merchandiser Walmart Inc., is building-out its 1 million-square-foot market distribution center in Imeson Park South in North Jacksonville at a project cost of $27.65 million.
Caddell Construction of Jacksonville is the contractor for the first phase of tenant improvements at 1511 Zoo Parkway, Building 300.
Sam’s Club will build-out its tenant space in the 1,003,200-square-foot building shell warehouse.
Harrison French and Associates, known as HFA, of Bentonville, Arkansas, is the architect. Walmart is based in Bentonville.
The city issued a permit in September 2022 for Evans General Contractors LLC of Savannah, Georgia, to build the speculative 1 million-square-foot building at a project cost of $51.8 million.
Sam’s Club was the code-named Project Crystal.
City Council enacted Ordinance 2023-332-A on June 13, 2023, approving a five-year $1.5 million Recapture Enhanced Value Grant for Project Crystal based on 50% of the increase in real and tangible property taxes for the project.
The building is on almost 63 acres.
In January 2023, Sam’s Club announced that it had undertaken “a significant transformation of its supply chain, evolving network and end-to-end capabilities.”
“Over the next several years, Sam’s Club will add numerous new facilities to its supply chain network as well as retrofitting a number of existing facilities for more enhanced physical and digital capabilities,” it announced on corporate.walmart.com.
“We have an opportunity to place ourselves on the cutting edge of efficiency and automation, unique to our business model,” said Joseph Godsey, Sam’s Club senior vice president of supply chain.
Sam’s Club said it is launching highly automated facilities with robotics.
“By combining the shorter distances and the efficiencies added via process, automation and digitization, replenishment of clubs and item fulfillment for members will be best in class,” it said.
VanTrust Real Estate LLC is the developer of Imeson Park South.
In September 2023, VanTrust sold the Sam’s Club building to a Coral Gables group for $95 million.
Through JI IPS Building E LLC, Van Trust sold the structure to AK Imeson LLC, whose registered agent is Interamerican Corporate Services LLC, led by lawyer Rene Murai.
VanTrust Real Estate said the Imeson Park South master plan totals 3 million square feet of industrial space.
It is south of Imeson Park, which totals about 2.5 million square feet and includes a 1 million-square-foot Amazon fulfillment center.