The developer who brought a 1 million-square-foot Amazon distribution center to Merrillville is planning to build another massive business park in town, potentially creating as many as 800 new jobs.
Dallas-based Crow Holdings Development built out Silos at Sanders Farms just off Interstate 65. Now it’s looking to build a yet-unnamed business park on a 63-acre site at the southwest corner of E. 73rd Avenue and Mississippi Street.
Crow Holdings Development proposes building a new three-building logistics park totaling 900,000 square feet, Merrillville Economic Development Director Angie Chilcott said. The project is estimated to create between 240 and 800 jobs depending on what tenants move in.
Chilcott said the developer expects to spend at least $70 million on the construction.
Like Silos at Sanders Farm, the business park would be constructed speculatively or on spec, meaning no tenants are lined up.
People are also reading…
The property is currently up for rezoning and will go before the town council next week for approval.
Crow Holdings Development has tentative purchase agreements with two families to buy farmland on the east of Interstate 65, Town Council Member Shawn Pettit said. It’s looking at building a 400,000-square-foot industrial building and two 250,000-square-foot buildings, he said.
“We’re very happy with what they’ve done for economic development in town,” Pettit said. “It’s going to bring a lot of assessed valuation.”
Crow Holdings, a national developer that built the Peachtree Center in Atlanta, the Embarcadero Center in San Francisco, the Dallas Market Center and The Windsor Court Hotel in New Orleans, originally built two 250,000-square-foot industrial buildings in AmeriPlex at the Crossroads in Merrillville. It leased them out to Big Lots, Midwest Tire and Auto, Quality Pasta and Turbo Metrics.
The developer then decided to build a new business park on the other side of Interstate 65, buying a 195-acre family farm. Merrillville widened Mississippi Street between 93rd Avenue and 101st Avenue after lining up federal funds through Congressman Frank Mrvan and former Congressman Pete Visclosky.
Crow Holdings invested $225 million to build the five-lot Silos at Sanders Farm business park, which includes the 1 million-square-foot Building 2 Amazon is leasing just off I-65.
“They’re now presenting another park further to the north,” Town Council President Rick Bella said. “It’s a feather in the cap of the town and shows that they have confidence that there’s sustainable growth here. It is really a huge undertaking to build another building park.”
Merrillville continues to see large-scale development on its south side.
“We have land that’s available on the south side,” he said. “If you go farther north, it’s full neighborhoods. The vacant land is on the south side of U.S. 30 so the natural progression is to develop there. There’s huge interest in developable land on the south part of town. We’re going to make sure to bring services there, including a fire station and more police officers.”
Merrillville has benefited greatly from Amazon’s $30 million, 190,000-square-foot delivery station in the AmeriPlex at the Crossroads, which opened in 2021.
“We’ve seen economic development because of it,” Bella said. “If you look around town on the streets, the gas stations and the tire shops, you see Amazon’s grey and blue trucks everywhere. They’re utilizing local businesses. They’re paying taxes. They have drivers driving around and they eat and get snacks in Merrillville and surrounding communities.”
Bella said the new business park should help draw even more major employers to town.
“It shows that Merrillville is a desired location,” he said. “We’re at the crossroads at U.S. 30 and I-65. We’re drawing companies from Illinois because our tax rate is so much better and they can save money and still operate their business. We have highway access and transportation infrastructure. We’re thrilled to be getting this investment.”
NWI Business Ins and Outs: Buona Beef, Great Harvest Bread Co., gluten-free bakery opening; bowling alley closed
Coming soon
Buona Beef, which bills itself as “Chicago’s Original Italian Beef,” is opening a second location in the Region.
The Berwyn-based chain is building a new restaurant next to Family Express on Silhavey Road in Valparaiso, said David Lasser, the principal at Merrillville-based Commercial In-Sites.
Buona Beef was recently named one of Chicagoland’s favorite Italian Beef places along with Al’s, Johnnie’s, Pop’s and Satchell’s Beef and Pizza, according to a WGN survey.
Joseph S. Pete
Coming soon
Buona Beef has been around for more than four decades, but has expanded more aggressively in recent years, opening locations across Chicagoland and franchising to owner-operators. It’s had high-profile sponsorships of the Cubs and White Sox, including the Buona Beef races pitting the fleet-footed and not-at-all-plodding Cheesy Beef, Juicy Beef and Hot & Sweet Beef in an all-out mad dash to the finish line on the exploding scoreboard at Guaranteed Rate Field.
It took over the former Krispy Kreme location on Indianapolis Boulevard in Schererville in 2017, drawing long lines in its dual drive-thru. Buona also eyed a Crown Point location in Beacon Hill that has not come to fruition.
Long run by the Buonavolanto family, it’s grown to more than 25 locations, including in Flossmoor and Beverly. It’s the second largest Italian Beef chain in Chicagoland after only Portillo’s.
Joseph S. Pete
Coming soon
Buona is building a new restaurant at 2910 John Howell Drive, Valparaiso Building and Code Enforcement Director Vicki Thrasher said.
Construction of the 4,700-square-foot restaurant is estimated to cost $833,780.
“The builder is Keystone Planning & Design,” she said. “I am not sure when construction will be completed.”
Joseph S. Pete
Coming soon
It specializes in Italian Beef, Chicago-style hot dogs, Italian sausage, meatball subs, pepper and egg sandwiches and other Chicago street food. The menu has expanded in recent years to include bowls and vegan plant-based versions of its signature Italian Beef.
Diners can order its Italian Beef dry, dipped, dunked, baptized, red with marinara sauce or the Buona Way in which it’s doused in gravy with an extra spoonful splashed on top.
For more information, visit buona.com.
Joseph S. Pete
Coming soon
Great Harvest Bread Co. will soon return to Crown Point.
The bakery previously served up freshly baked bread, soups, sandwiches and baked goods at 204 S. Main St. just off the Old Lake County Courthouse square in downtown Crow Point. But it closed during the pandemic and was replaced by the Sakura KJ Sushi & Hibachi Steak House, which opened last year.
Before that, Great Harvest had a location at the intersection of Ridge Road and Hohman Avenue in Munster.
Great Harvest Bread Co. signed a lease to open a new location at 10420-10430 Broadway in the Crown Village East development at Summit and Broadway. Lasser said it’s the hottest area in Northwest Indiana right now for new retail development, due to the population growth in Crown Point and neighboring Winfield, as well as the nearby Interstate 65 interchange.
Joseph S. Pete
Coming soon
Already familiar to Crown Point residents, Great Harvest is a Montana-based chain known for breads like its Honey Whole Wheat, Farmhouse White, Dakota, Nine Grain, Spinach Feta, Cranberry Orange, Cinnamon Raisin Walnut and Spelt, an ancient Egyptian grain bread made with honey and salt.
Great Harvest will be located at the end of a strip mall and have a drive-thru. It will be owned by the Smith family, which recently bought the franchise rights to Northwest Indiana.
“I’m extremely excited for them as this is a great location and one of the few drive-thrus available in Northwest Indiana,” said Brett McDermott of Crown Point-based Latitude Commercial, which brokered the deal. “The community has anxiously been waiting for Great Harvest to return and the Smiths are excited to get their doors open and offer their wonderful products to our residents.”
Great Harvest will open a bakery and cafe sometime this summer, serving breads that are milled and baked daily like its signature Cinnamon Chip Bread. It will serve sandwiches, salads, soups and a variety of seasonal and specialty breads, in addition to the signature staples that will be available daily.
Joseph S. Pete
Coming soon
The bakery also will do catering and wholesaling.
“We have been looking for the right business opportunity for a few years. When we found Great Harvest and saw their mission and values, we knew that this was exactly what we wanted to build and grow in our community,” said Elise Smith, one of the franchise owners.
The Smiths plan to open more Great Harvest locations in Northwest Indiana in the coming years.
For more information, visit greatharvestnwi.com.
Joseph S. Pete
Open
Jennilynn’s Gluten Free Kitchen is now serving gluten-free food out of The Lincoln Kitchen in Valparaiso.
It will eventually offer takeout and delivery at the ghost kitchen facility billed as a “digital food court” at 704 Silhavy Road.
People can currently pick up cinnamon rolls, cupcakes, cheesy bread and other gluten-free foods. It will start offering breakfast, lunch, dinner and coffee on March 1, when it takes over a coffee shop space at the entrance to the business.
Joseph S. Pete
Open
It also will offer delivery via UberEats, GrubHub and other third-party delivery services. People can currently order online and come in and pick the food up.
“It’s gluten-free for people who have to eat that way,” owner Jennifer Coen said. “Everything is baked or made as close to traditional baking as possible with eggs, milk and salted butter. I’m working on a keto, vegan and non-dairy items for people who are allergic to dairy.”
Coen found out she couldn’t eat gluten, to the point where her doctor advised her to carry an EpiPen in case she went into anaphylactic shock. So she set out to bake for people suffering the same condition. She’s working on a variety of menu items like breakfast sandwiches, blueberry muffins, cheesy pepperoni bread, chicken and veggie wraps, calzones, breadsticks and cupcakes.
Joseph S. Pete
Open
“I play around a lot,” she said. “I’m dabbling in a kitchen that’s safe, certified and free of gluten.”
She sees a growing need for more gluten-free fare.
“A lot of it comes down to celiac disease, where there’s an autoimmune reaction because the digestive process can’t break down the protein in wheat, rye and barley,” she said. “More and more people are discovering they have it or are allergic to it.”
Joseph S. Pete
Open
Jennilynn’s Gluten Free Kitchen also will have coffee, cold brew and boba tea. It will operate a kitchen in the back for making gluten-free foods for pickup and delivery that’s not shared with anyone else to prevent cross-contamination. It also soon will have a coffee shop at a counter by the entrance where walk-in traffic can grab a caffeinated drink or a quick meal to-go.
“This is a place to come to get a treat,” she said. “A lot of the gluten-free food in grocery stores is nasty. This is homemade. It’s cinnamon rolls, cupcakes and other baked goods made from scratch.”
She hopes to eventually sell her goods at mom-and-pop places across the United States and Whole Foods Supermarkets. She’s working to eliminate all artificial flavors and colorings to meet Whole Foods’ rigorous standards.
Joseph S. Pete
Open
“It would benefit people with different illnesses that prevent them from eating gluten,” she said. “But I hope it’s food people can just enjoy for the taste of it if they give it a shot, even if they eat traditionally. There’s a lot of people with something wrong with them where they can’t digest gluten and I believe there’s 100% a need for it.”
Coen started the Facebook Group NWI & Beyond… Gluten Free Living where people can talk about their diets, share recipes and voice their opinions of gluten-freed foods “good, bad and ugly,” she said. She’s also working to copyright the slogan “Gluten-Free Yummies Satisfying Tummies.”
Joseph S. Pete
Open
“Gluten conditions are not going away,” she said. “This gives people something enjoyable to eat that’s safe with no cross-contamination.”
For more information, email [email protected], find Jennilynn’s Gluten Free Kitchen or vist thelincolnkitchen.com, where people can place orders.
Joseph S. Pete
Closed
The Super Bowl bowling alley closed near downtown Crown Point late last year and soon will be replaced with a new office development.
Bowlers rolled in the old-school lanes there for decades, often while nursing a cold one from the Final Frame bar.
“After 25 years of being in service to the Crown Point community we have decided to close our doors,” the owners posted on social media. “We want to thank the Crown Point community for their support all these years. The countless families that celebrated birthdays and special occasions with us, the businesses that allowed us to host their events, the schools for letting us be a destination for fun trips and summer gym, the many churches, preschools and different groups and organizations that we have had the pleasure of creating and hosting events with.”
Joseph S. Pete
Closed
The bowling alley at 218 S. East St. had open bowling, cosmic bowling, pool and bar food like wings and pizza. It hosted many active leagues, including youth leagues.
“To the youth league coaches and many league staff volunteers, we appreciate you helping bring up the next generation of bowlers that went on to our Crown Point high school and middle school bowling teams and to the boys and girls, past and present, that made up those teams, thank you for keeping this sport alive,” the owners posted on social media. “Most importantly we would like to thank our staff over these many years. We have had some amazing people come through our doors, for some it was the first job they ever had. It has been an honor to work with you all! None of this would have been possible without all of you and we are honored that we had the chance to be a part of all of your lives.”
If you would like your business to be included in a future column, email [email protected].
Joseph S. Pete
This post was originally published on here
