Ryan Companies helps deliver first U.S. high-tech fulfillment center

Ryan Companies US Inc., a national developer, builder, designer and property manager offering full-service commercial real estate solutions, recently announced the grand opening of Kroger Ocado Customer Fulfillment Center (CFC) in Groveland, Fla.

The 419,317-SF state-of-the-art, automated warehouse will introduce Kroger’s innovative shopping experience to central Florida, a new market for the nation’s largest grocery retailer, while also extending its reach and capabilities in online ordering and home delivery. 

Located in Groveland, just 30 miles from Orlando, the high-tech facility is the first of its kind in the United States.

In partnership with United Kingdom-based online retailer Ocado Solutions, autonomous mini-fridge-sized robotics will work seamlessly with team members to gather, pack and load online orders made by new Kroger customers. Kroger Ocado will provide home delivery of fresh grocery items without requiring patrons to sign up for a third-party subscription service. 

Ryan served as the lead architect, engineer, developer, and construction team for the project.

“The nation’s most prominent e-commerce, retail and manufacturing companies trust Ryan’s end-to-end industrial real estate services for the facility solutions that drive their success,” said JP Bacariza, vice president, market leader – Tampa at Ryan Companies.

“The new Groveland site will be a gamechanger for Kroger in Central Florida, allowing the community to enjoy America’s largest grocery retailer for the first time. Our team served as the touchpoint on each phase of the project from site selection to construction, and we are proud to celebrate this milestone with our long-term partners, Kroger and Ocado.”

Ryan developed a relationship with Kroger after being selected to design and build the first Ocado automated warehouse outside Cincinnati, Ohio. Ryan’s knowledge of designing and constructing complex facilities with automation and robotics played a part in deciding to work on additional Kroger Ocado fulfillment centers, including a separate facility in suburban Atlanta that will open later this year. 

Ryan has completed 40 automated warehouse projects (33+ million square feet) in 20 states for leading brands such as Kroger, Target, SuperValu and Nestle Purina.

“Implementing our “One Ryan” approach of improving the connection between design and construction was instrumental in tackling every challenge we faced and enabled us to deliver this project within our target 13-month timeframe,” said Bob West, director of Industrial Business Development for Ryan Companies. “E-commerce is fueling a surge in demand for automated warehouse facilities that are equipped to meet the fast-changing needs of grocers and F&B providers, and the comprehensive menu of service offerings provided under Ryan’s umbrella will allow us to innovate and drive change in this critical sector for years to come.”

The relationship with Kroger and Ocado ties into Ryan’s broader strategic partnership strategy and delivering projects as more than a contractor, but as experts in each phase of the process, from planning and designing to construction.

The Groveland project is unique to the region because Kroger does not currently have brick-and-mortar stores in Florida. The community anticipates the customer fulfillment facility will attract many new high-paying jobs. Features of the four-floor Kroger Ocado site include the distribution center, functional office space, double story break room and a mezzanine floor.

The Kroger Ocado Customer Fulfillment Center broke ground in July 2019 and will begin delivering groceries in Central Florida this summer.

Diversity reigns for K-State multicultural center project

When Hollis + Miller was engaged to design the new Morris Family Multicultural Student Center for Kansas State University – a space for campus organizations to advance student diversity, social justice and inclusion – the firm gathered a unique team of architects and designers to lead the project.

That team was not only composed of several women, but of diverse professionals who bring a unique perspective of their own. According to Hollis + Miller staff, that type of team in the architecture field is often rare, even in spite of recent progress.

“The project was not only a pleasure but also a blessing for me. Having varied backgrounds made for an easier mental setting. We kept questioning, kept pushing each other and pushing the limits. And being all different helped us identify the goals the client had,” said Ishita Banerjii, a project architect at Hollis + Miller.

One recent survey found that while women comprise about half of architecture graduates, they make up only 20% of licensed architects working in the field. Yet, the unique perspective of the women on the KSU project team – and the diverse backgrounds they come from – led to a more inclusive perspective.

When finished, the new center – set to open this November – will occupy 13,000 SF and serve as the official home for the university’s more than thirty multicultural organizations, serving around 4,000 students. The multicultural center will encourage pedestrian interaction, and will create natural pathways from the rest of campus.

In addition to Banerjii, the Hollis + Miller team included Nicole Rezai (senior interiors), Michelle Iwig-Harmon (structural) and Gabby Coleman (junior architect) among several others. Coleman was able to first contribute to the project while still an architecture student at K-State, when she was asked to provide feedback from a student’s perspective.

“This building represents something more than even the space it will provide. I remember there was this outcry for ways the university could show they were really invested in the experience of students of color. It was just exciting to see the university commit to not only the building, but what it stood for,” Coleman said.

Melanie Luthi, a senior project engineer at McCownGordon, the firm leading the construction on the project, is also involved on the project.

“I have a mixed-race family of my own, and knowing that students and faculty – both past and current – worked so hard to bring to campus a safe and prosperous environment for students like my own children gave me the extra energy and focus to get through a challenging COVID-19 environment to deliver this project timely and with the utmost attention to craft and detail,” Luthi said.

The team is excited for the completion of the project and what it will mean for the current and future students.

“It will make a difference for the next generation,” Banerjii said. “They will feel more comfortable in their own skin. This project has been very inspiring for me.”

Waldo Ice House redevelopment helps freeze housing shortage

The history of the Waldo Ice House project dates back 100 years to when the site was home to the Kansas City Ice Company from the mid-1920s until the mid 1960s.

By 1970, Waldo Antiques operated the property until 2017. That’s when developers Diane Botwin of Botwin Real Estate and Andrew Ganahl of Linden Street Partners put plans in motion to redevelop the site with a mixed-use project. 

“My father-in-law, Jerry Raeder, has memories of going to the Kansas City Ice Company plant as a child in the mid-1940s before the family had an electric refrigerator,” said Ganahl. 

However, due to decades of neglect, redevelopment of the original historic ice house building did not pencil, and the building was demolished. Keeping in the spirit of the original structure’s use and objective, Ice House Partners LLC was formed, and the Waldo apartments became reality.

Botwin and Ganahl met as neighboring business owners in the KC Crossroads. Botwin as a 30-year local business and property owner, and Ganahl, as a regional urban infill developer, decided that multifamily housing deemed “missing middle” was needed as an alternative for people who want to live in Waldo but did not desire a single-family home. 

“We have leased 4,000 square feet of the first-floor commercial space to a local optometrist and have 800 square feet awaiting a new tenant,” said Botwin.

The project is the first new construction project Waldo has seen in many years, finally bringing housing options to the neighborhood’s constrained supply of housing,

Details of the multifamily portion include:

·      44 units, mix of studios (25%), one-bedrooms (55%) and two- bedrooms (20%); most with balconies

·      Rent starting around $1,000/month with average price of $1,250/month

·      Nationally-exhibited local artist is creating a site specific work to be installed in the apartment lobby

·      Walkable and transit—oriented; adjacent to CVS, Aldi's, Walgreen's, local restaurants and retail; plus close proximity to major transit stop at 75th and Wornall, including Main MAX bus line

The project team includes Slaggie Architects, Inc; general contractor, Haren Companies; engineers Leigh & O’Kane (structural), Smith & Boucher (MEP) and Taliaferro & Browne (civil).

A completion date is slated for summer 2021.