Construction of a new wholesale produce market in San Antonio is scheduled to start in late December by Abasto Properties LLC of Mcllen, TX.
The project will be built in at least three phases, including a total of 200 warehouses. The first phase, consisting of 60 warehouses, should be finished by the end of 2014 or early in 2015.
The 80-acre site near the corner of Loop 410 and I-37 in south San Antonio will be about 3½ hours from McAllen.
San Antonio was selected because it can serve a large local and regional market that includes Houston, Austin, Dallas and San Marcos.
The market will feature mostly of small- and medium-sized warehouses operated by Mexican exporters desiring a presence in the market.
The facility will mostly handle imported Mexican product, but also will include some U.S. product destined for south of the border.
Among the San Antonio wholesale produce market features are:
- All warehouse units are 3,100 square feet with an additional 900-square-foot mezzanine for offices;
- All warehouses will be refrigerated;
- Each cold room can hold up to 156 pallets — about seven truckloads;
- Temperature in the loading areas will be controlled to ensure cold chain continuity;
- Each warehouse features a 450 square-foot covered dock;
- The project will feature extra-wide streets for easy truck maneuvering; and
- Each warehouse will have plenty of vehicle parking in front plus ample general parking for visitors and trucks.
San Antonio will differ from McAllen, which ships nearly all of its product out of state, in that about half of its product will be distributed locally or regionally.
Some of the tenants will be McAllen firms that are expanding their operations, while others will have their sole location in San Antonio.