Spec project aims at Long Island’s cold storage demand

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A joint venture between global and national developers is building a speculative cold storage facility in Ronkonkoma. 

Rosemont, Ill.-based Venture One Real Estate and Miami-based BGO Cold Chain, an affiliate of global real estate investment firm BGO (BentallGreenOak), have just begun developing a 137,470-square-foot cold storage building on 9 acres at 2100 Smithtown Ave. The developers wouldn’t disclose their investment on the project, though industry sources estimated the total cost of acquisition and construction at about $50 million. 

The new cold storage facility, dubbed Venture Park Cold at ISP, will be built with insulated metal panel construction and feature a convertible freezer/cooler with temperature ranges of -10°F to +35°F, according to a statement from the JV. The building will have 40-foot clear ceiling heights (28-foot cold dock), insulated glycol floor slab, 18 loading docks with vertical levers (expandable to 25), a drive-in door and parking for 194 cars. 

“The project represents a major advancement for the region’s aging cold storage infrastructure, setting a new standard for efficiency and reliability within the food supply chain,” said Brian McDonagh, Venture One’s senior vice president for the Northeast region. 

The property on Smithtown Avenue, across from the west side of Long Island MacArthur Airport, was formerly occupied by a 110,770-square-foot building that served as the headquarters for The Bountiful Company, the Long Island-based vitamin and supplements firm formerly known as Nature’s Bounty. Venture One purchased the property for $16.2 million in August 2022. 

The project, set to be LEED certified, is headed by Ronkonkoma-based Aurora Contractors, which has been active in the construction of specialized cold storage facilities here. A little over a decade ago, Aurora built the 420,000-square-foot Sysco warehouse and distribution complex in Central Islip, nearly half of which is equipped for cold storage. 

“We are very excited to work with Venture One and BGO as the design/build contractor for this out-of-the-ground cold storage facility,” said Michael Adler, director of Business Development for Aurora. “Our expertise within the cold storage asset class in addition to our design-build industrial experience is certain to ensure this project’s success.” 

The demand for cold storage facilities here has grown significantly in recent years, as online grocery businesses, meal delivery services, and foodservice firms have flourished. Because of their significantly higher development costs, cold storage projects are usually built with specific tenants already in hand, so it’s unusual to build them on spec. 

A Cushman & Wakefield team of Tom DeLuca, Frank Frizalone, Nicholas Gallipoli, John Giannuzzi, Austin Fitzpatrick and David Frattaroli is assigned to find a tenant or multiple tenants for Venture Cold Park at ISP, which has been assisted by a 10-year payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement from the Town of Islip Industrial Development Agency. 

DeLuca called the project “a major advancement” for the region. 

“The facility is set to provide much needed relief to end users amid the recent surge in demand for highly coveted cold storage space,” DeLuca said. “The property is located less than 1.2 miles from the Long Island Expressway for efficient access to Hunts Point Cooperative Market, the world’s largest food distribution center, JFK International Airport and all five boroughs of New York City.”

Venture Cold Park at ISP is slated for completion in Q4 2025.