BDO top spot
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By SCOTT SCHWEBKE
Standard-Examiner staff
sschwebke@standard.net
Business park keeps growing
OGDEN --The Hershey Company's recent decision to open a 540,000 square-foot candy distribution facility in Business Depot Ogden demonstrates the industrial park's sweet success despite fears of an impending recession, says a BDO official.
"We just haven't seen it (a recession) hit here yet," said Steve Waldrip, a pro-ject manager for The Boyer Co., which operates BDO on behalf of the city. "2008 looks to be a very strong year in commercial real estate."
Jason P. Perry, executive director of the Governor's Office of Economic Development, said BDO's success with Hershey is a shining example of the creativity of state and local officials in luring companies during tough economic times.
"The number of companies looking to relocate or expand to Utah has never been higher," said Perry, adding the state's highly trained work force, favorable tax structure and quality of life make it a top draw for businesses.
Four buildings encompassing about 874,400 square feet of space are either under construction or on the drawing board at BDO.
BDO has leased 769,000 square feet within those buildings, which includes the planned Hershey's distribution center near 400 North and 700 West. An adjacent 135,000 square-foot building is being constructed at 450 N. Depot Drive that will primarily house Southern Classic Foods, a syrup supplier for Hershey.
In addition, Barnes Aerospace, which manufactures and repairs products used in aircraft engines and frames, as well as land-based industrial gas turbines, will lease 120,000 square feet of space in a new building under construction off 1025 South Depot Drive.
Steve Moore, division manager for Barnes Aerospace, said when the company decided to move from West Ogden to a larger facility the most logical location was BDO.
"It's the best place for us," he said.
Another 34,400-square-foot building is going up at 1069 W. Stewart Drive. Natural Health and Spine will utilize about 4,000 square feet in the structure, said Waldrip.
At the end of 2007, BDO had about 5.6 million square feet of space in existing and newly constructed buildings and had leased about 5.1 million square feet, a 91 percent occupancy rate.
Located on 1,400 acres, the BDO complex was established by the Army in 1941 as a maintenance and supply depot. In 1942, employment at then-Defense Depot Ogden rose to more than 6,000, driven by demand for combat supplies during World War II.
The depot continued to employ thousands in support of military activities, including the wars in Korea, Vietnam and the Persian Gulf.
In 1995, the federal Base Realignment and Closure Act process determined that DDO would close with some functions moving to nearby Hill Air Force Base.
Three years later the federal government began transferring ownership of BDO to the city, based on an agreement under which all revenue generated at the park would be reinvested into its infrastructure until October 2006.
Boyer has been managing BDO since 2000 and evenly splits revenue from the park with the city. The city and Boyer are each expected to receive about $2.4 million in revenue from BDO during fiscal 2008, said Mark Johnson, the city's management services director.
The partnership between Boyer and the city enabled "creative deal structuring" that has allowed BDO to prosper even during tough economic times, Waldrip said.
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