While Kenosha County is a known popular destination for industrial development, BizTimes reports there is a new hot spot on the rise in the area: the Janesville-Beloit corridor along I-39/90.

“We call it ‘Little Kenosha,’” said Adam Matson, an industrial real estate broker and director in Newmark’s Milwaukee office. “It’s sliding under the radar for some, but it is going to hop up really quick. Just in the last three years there has been two million square feet of industrial moves in that area.”

The Janesville-Beloit corridor features a variety of benefits, BizTimes reports:

  • Companies seek out this area due to the large population of blue-collar workers
  • Lowered cap rates appeal to investors looking for low-risk investments
  • Convenient access to I-39/90 provides connections to Chicago, Iowa, the Dakotas, the Twin Cities, and Denver

This corridor also allows companies that don’t need particularly large facilities to find sites at a more affordable price, due to the location.

Phoenix Investors recently acquired a 56.2-acre site in Beloit to build a 500,000-square-foot speculative industrial warehouse intended for a future tenant. Occupancy is planned for late 2022, and the facility will also allow over 100 local job opportunities to be created.

Other companies are following suit, including Zilber Ltd, which has holdings in Janesville, and STAG Industrial, which has holdings in Janesville, according to BizTimes. Cushman & Wakefield | Boerke is also looking to close a deal in Beloit.

Read more on BizTimes.com.

Frank P. Crivello is a Milwaukee-based developer and Chairman & Founder of Phoenix Investors.