A new look at logistics real estate

Unique in the Netherlands. That's how we might call Amsterdam Logistic Cityhub. In the Amsterdam port area, barely 7 minutes by boat from the city center, a new logistics center for Amsterdam city distribution is being built. The aim of the XXL city hub is to centrally and environmentally friendly handle the logistics of building materials, parcels and catering items in the capital via electrically powered transport by road and water. The new building consists of some 300,000 m2 GFA, including some 120,000 m2 of storage and distribution space, 80,000 m2 of mezzanine floors, 11,000 m2 of office space, 200 loading and unloading docks and 1,700 parking spaces for cars, vans, bins and trucks. The site has its own quay on the North Sea Canal and excellent access to the city and highway A10.

The project site in the Western Docklands was long occupied by chemical producer Chemtura, which was acquired by Lanxess in 2017. "In 2018, I read in the newspaper that the plant would be closed," says Wim Beelen, entrepreneur and creator of the last-mile solution. "As an entrepreneur, I really like developing on the waterfront because you have unlimited access to the whole world from here. That is why I bought and remediated this most pesticide-contaminated site in the Netherlands at my own risk. Then I made a connection with the water, by means of a 180-meter-long quay, after which I started looking for a suitable new destination. What need do entrepreneurs have? The city? And the area?"

The entrepreneur as a starting point

"The logistics industry invariably opts for single-tenant developments, where a building is leased to a single user," Beelen emphasizes. "These buildings are not geared toward collaboration and cross-pollination. A shame, because entrepreneurs do need this. In recent decades, logistics real estate in particular has been developed for financial gain. In 95% of cases, this has focused on the buyer of the property, rather than the user. My ambition, on the other hand, is to develop from the user's perspective, with the best connections to the city, via road and water. For this project, I put myself in the shoes of the logistics entrepreneur: how would he or she like to work? Which facilities, layouts, robustness, heights and views fit the bill? Amsterdam Logistic Cityhub facilitates all entrepreneurs in the e-commerce sector and parcel services. It also offers a solution for parties in construction and offline retail, who can do everything in the building. From office functions to hall use and/or the storage of (hazardous) materials. Only when the development was ready did I look at the costs. Then we looked for a party that believes in park management. We found that party in Central Trade Park (CTP), which purchased the building and is responsible for its maintenance and management."

Transportation, accessibility and environment

In his development, Beelen has included all of the city's challenges, he emphasizes. For example, with regard to transportation, accessibility and the environment. "Amsterdam is silting up. With the still growing population and increasing congestion, combined with a zero emission goal, there is a great need for alternative forms and facilities of transportation. Interesting for the city and its entrepreneurs is not only to make transports more sustainable, but also to cluster as much as possible. That one boat, one truck, one van or one bicycle is available in which all companies can place their deliveries. In Amsterdam Logistic Cityhub, single packages and orders will soon be efficiently bundled into one complete order, which can also be taken away in one go." In addition, Beelen paid extensive attention to parking facilities. Because parking is also a thorny issue in the industry, he says. "Again driven by financial motives, developers still too often construct buildings without good parking facilities. After all, parking doesn't make any money. Instead, all available land is used to build marketable halls, causing immediate inconvenience to neighbors and neighborhood. In all the plans I have drawn for this planning area, I have started precisely from the parking garage. The result is a good building that is geared to the end user and that will soon sell itself."

Greatest appreciation

Land is scarce in the Netherlands, he emphasizes. "That's why I chose to build four floors on top of each other. Under the second floor field all parking functions are integrated, while on the top floor all offices are set up. The logistics market laughed hard at my plans for 2.5 years. Now that construction has started, however, every logistics developer is suddenly talking about brownfields, multi-level land use, roof gardens, city hubs and last-mile solutions. That indicates that the focus is changing. My greatest appreciation may be that in about five years, there will still be five to 10 of these buildings in the Netherlands. Our country can certainly use them."