Airport buys huge parcel to develop new cargo hub
Philadelphia International Airport plans to turn the adjacent Henderson tract into a facility to tap into a $54 billion cargo transportation industry in a move to optimize resources during lowvolume intervals.
“From the airport’s perspective, cargo is a great opportunity,” James Tyrrell, chief revenue officer for the Philadelphia International Airport, said. “Cargo traditionally operates during the off hours. That allows us to really maximize the use of infrastructure that would otherwise be sitting there unused.”
In January, the city of Philadelphia acquired the 135-acre Henderson tract in for $54.5 million. It then held an Air Cargo Workshop at which approximately three dozen cargo and logistics companies had conversations with officials about what they’d like to see in a transportation facility.
“We want to develop it for warehousing so that we can build up our air cargo interest,” Mary Flannery, the airport’s marketing and public affairs manager, said.
Airport CEO Chellie Cameron said the purchase was part of a move to position Philadelphia to capitalize on a sizeable market.
“This is a fabulous opportunity because there is so much potential for companies to use PHL for their air cargo business,” she said. “The Philadelphia area is among the national leaders in shipping high-value cargo but only 9 percent of air cargo from this region comes through PHL. We want to change that and these new facilities will enable us to reach our goal.”
Tyrrell explained that airport officials had commissioned a study within the past few months to ascertain air cargo patterns and how Philadelphia could position itself in that fray.
Based on the evaluation, it was determined that Philadelphia has less than a tenth of the air cargo business in a region where much of it goes to New York, Newark, N.J., Washington and Baltimore.
“The air cargo business is out there and we can capture a greater percentage of it,” Flannery said. “There’s quite a potential here.” Tyrrell agreed. “When we acquired this parcel of ground, we said, ‘Wow, we really want to make use of this opportunity because it’s a one-time opportunity,’” he said.
So, the airport invited air cargo and logistics representatives to the Airport Marriott last month to ask questions and provide feedback as design and infrastructure requirements are crafted.
“E-commerce sales today are projected to more than double by 2020 and the Philadelphia region has a very strong corporate presence in many industries, particularly the pharmaceutical sector,” Tyrrell said. “The business is here and with approximately 2-million square feet of new state-of-the-art cargo handling facilities available to accommodate the region’s demands, the future looks bright for PHL.”
He added that officials were pleased with the value of the companies who attended the workshop as he outlined some of the qualities they requested.
First was cost, which was followed by cold storage, good access to the airfield and good access to the highway system.
“We are strategically located,” Tyrrell said. “The airport sits right on I-95. You can be in three states in 15 minutes. We need to leverage that geographic opportunity that we have.”
To provide direct airfield access from the Henderson tract, Tinicum Island Road would need to be relocated. Tyrrell explained that it could be redirected along the perimeter of the land along the natural pathway following the creek.
However, airport officials would work with township and county representatives and other stakeholders to determine what would be best.
“Whatever we do will work Tyrrell said.
In the meantime, the Delaware County Common Pleas Court will have its Board of View review the value of the Henderson tract.
“We paid what we think market value,” Tyrrell said.
And, regardless, the development of the property – including the demolition of two on site warehouses – moves forward with preliminary work of examining the existing structures on the land and of looking at the environmental processes. for is everybody,” the fair