Backlash against warehouse construction is growing.

1 year ago
37

Americans have grown accustomed to ordering almost everything online and having it arrive with days or even hours. We were all stuck at home during covid with stimulus checks and/or large unemployment checks. Like most of you, I ordered stuff online.
Online shopping requires warehouses and the 18-wheel trucks that service them. Giant warehouses feed e-commerce and other businesses. Part of the inflation we need today is the result of too many dollars chasing too few goods. What was required was a more robust industrial system which includes additional warehouses. You may have noticed around you, an explosion in warehouse construction. I am near O’hare Airport in Chicago and the warehouses were going up left and right.
This spurred a surge in industrial construction that outpaced any other commercial property type. Since 2020, over 1.5 billion square feet of warehouse space has been built and an additional 825 square feet is under development according to CoStar Group Inc. The industrial sector is the top performer in the commercial property sector. Rents for industrial properties have risen 40% nationwide over the past two years.
Many people do not want additional warehouses in their areas and the number of these people are growing as the effects of warehouse operations are felt in local communities. These warehouses are serviced by round the clock truck traffic that can become a nuisance due to sound and exhaust fumes. In addition, 18 wheel trucks clog up traffic. How often do you switch lanes when you see a huge truck up ahead at a stop light? Did you ever notice how rough the road is near intersections? This is from the trucks being stopped at lights and putting weight on the road. Municipalities from California to Ohio to Georgia have started passing moratoriums on warehouse development.
Warehouse development has fallen in recent months because of increasing interest rates that make financing more expensive and slows down economic growth.
Works Cited:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/rapid-warehouse-growth-sparks-local-resident-backlash-across-the-u-s-53502618?mod=hp_major_pos2#cxrecs_s

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