Hawkins Field Industrial Park sees airport traffic boost

JACKSON - Growth at the JacksonEvers International Airport has increased traffic from private aircraft to the Hawkins Field Airport, which has been an advantage for increasing visibility for the Hawkins Field Industrial Park.

Benjie D. Barham, director of business development for the Hinds County

"A very interesting thing, as it relates to Hawkins Field, is that the airport facilities have attracted more and more activity as a result of private aircraft use being diverted from Jackson-Evers International Airport," Barham said. "Corporate executives are now coming through there regularly, and that has increased visibility and exposure for the park and Hinds County."

Jason Brookins, executive director of HCEDD, said at one time Hawkins Field Industrial Park had a lot of warehouse space left vacant by Jitney Jungle closing.

"But that actually brought in an opportunity for other businesses that needed space but didn't want to build a new building," Brookins said. "Not only has it been a good industrial park, but it has been a good commercial investment for warehouse owners - people who wanted to buy a building and lease it out."

Playing an important role

Brookins said Hawkins Field Industrial Park has played an important role in the economy providing jobs in a central location in Jackson for a number of years. The Mississippi National Guard is located out there as well, and has added to the growth of the industrial park with some new buildings.

Hawkins Field Industrial Park traditionally has been a processing, light manufacturing and warehousing hub. That is still true, and HCEDD is marketing it as such. Pilgrim's Pride Foods recently expanded operations of their distribution hub from 15,000 square feet to over 75,000 square feet. Jackson Distribution Inc., a cotton warehousing operation, is the largest of its kind south of Memphis in the country.

Food distribution is a huge portion of the active square footage in the park. Sysco, U.S. Foodservice, The Merchants Co. and Pilgrim's Pride all have large operations.

Manufacturing is another large segment of the park's occupied space. Milwaukee Electric Tool, Constar Plastics and Great Southern Industries all employ large numbers of workers.

Brookins said that many of the buildings at Hawkins Field Industrial Park are close to full occupancy.

Looking to the future

"Now the opportunity is to find available land, at this point probably on the west side I-220, for future development projects," Brookins said.

HCEDD has acquired 450 acres of land at another airport in the area, the John Bell Williams Airport located between Clinton and Raymond. That has resulted in an expansion of the airport and hangar facilities.

"We have named it the West Hinds Industrial Park at John Bell Williams Airport," Barham said. "We are targeting industrial, manufacturing and technology/back office operations there to complement Hinds Community College's effort to grow their technology applications programs at an off-campus setting. This property will be extremely marketable as Hinds County continues to develop westward and the Clinton to Byram Corridor project moves forward."

Another major industrial property is the HCEDD's J.C. "Sonny" McDonald Industrial Center off I-55 in South Hinds County. Barham said this 462-acre park is ideally positioned to house manufacturing, warehousing, processing and large office operations.

The Clinton Business and Industrial Park has 400 available acres that are privately owned land, but served with water/sewer and utilities by the City of Clinton. The park is located adjacent to 1-20 with rail access. Several large facilities are available for sale or lease. Existing industries include Delphi Automotive Systems, Mega Plastics/McNeely Plastics, AKZO Nobel Coatings and Gulf States Canners Inc. The professional business park includes a lake, wooded lots and utilities.

In total, the HCEDD has more than 1,500 acres of industrial park space available, 95% of which is adjacent to or within two miles of interstates or fourlane highways.

"A logical focus for us now is the automotive tier two and three suppliers and logistics companies that are servicing Nissan, as well as other Southern automotive corridor companies such as Hyundai, Toyota, Honda, Mercedes Benz and others," Barham said. "Jackson/Hinds County is positioned as a very strategic location to supply parts and services to a variety of automotive-related entities."

For more information including details regarding available properties, see the Web site www.hcedd.com or call Barham at (601) 353-6056.