Package Delivery Facility Planned for Surprise

By Tasha Anderson for AZBEX 
A new package delivery service facility is being planned at the NEC of Litchfield and Sweetwater Roads in Surprise. 
Applicant, Withey Morris, LLC, on behalf of real estate developer, BH DevCo, submitted a request for site plan approval to the city for the approximately 145.5KSF development, called Project Baxter. The Surprise Planning & Zoning Commission heard and recommended the project for approval at its June 18th meeting. 
According to the submitted documents, “The package delivery facility will provide a physical location from which a third-party provider fulfills customer orders for ecommerce retailers.” Inventory arriving at this facility will be prepackaged and labeled and are anticipated to be shipped in a turnaround of less than 30 days. 
The single-story industrial building will include, “concrete tilt-up exterior load-bearing wall panels steel columns, and truss framing with purlins/decking roof construction,” and will utilize accent colors for the entrances and building parapet. “The customer service and associate’s entrances are distinguished with an entry feature made of corrugated metal. Both entries articulate from the building, providing depth in façade and clear destinations for those approaching the building.” 
Access to the site will be from two points per side of the facility, which totals eight entry points. Employee entry will be from Soledad Street. Project Baxter will provide 1,339 parking spaces total, including 331 parking spaces strictly for employees. 
“Parking is a major component for the facility,” the documents state. Tractor trailers will bring in the packages, which will be sorted on-site and then placed in transfer vans for final delivery. 
The facility is also designed to provide infrastructure for future electric vehicle charging stations for all of the vehicles in the loading/overnight areas and half of the employee parking spaces.  
The documents do not say who will be operating the facility once it has been constructed; however, it does note that Project Baxter will operate similar to other delivery providers like USPS, UPS and FedEx.