Polaris: More Than 800,000 SF Across Two Buildings at SouthPoint Huntsville
Polaris Inc., maker of Ranger and RZR off-road vehicles and the Polaris Slingshot, leased a newly built 404,000 square foot Hollingsworth building at SouthPoint Business Park near Huntsville, Alabama in 2021 to support its 920,000 square foot plant six miles away. A year later, Polaris leased a second Hollingsworth building of 405,000 square feet.
At a glance
| Client | Polaris Inc., founded 1954 |
|---|---|
| Industry | Off-road vehicles (Ranger, RZR) and the Polaris Slingshot; assembly, metal fabrication, welding, painting, injection molding |
| Location | SouthPoint Business Park, Huntsville, AL, adjacent to I-65 and I-565 |
| Building one | 404,000 SF, leased April 2021, 40 foot clear height, 60 by 60 columns, 50 dock doors, concrete tilt wall |
| Building two | 405,000 SF, completed and leased April 2022, 40 foot clear, 50+ dock doors, 50+ trailer drops, ESFR, 6 inch reinforced floor |
| Context | Supports Polaris's 920,000 SF Huntsville manufacturing plant six miles away, opened 2016 with roughly 1,700 workers |
| Outcome | More than 800,000 SF of Hollingsworth buildings serving one manufacturer, leased as each building completed |
Who is Polaris?
Polaris Inc., founded in 1954, manufactures the Ranger and RZR off-road vehicle lines and the Polaris Slingshot, with a 920,000 square foot plant in Huntsville, Alabama running assembly, metal fabrication, welding, painting, and injection molding.
The Huntsville plant opened in spring 2016 with roughly 1,700 workers. As production scaled, the operation needed major warehousing, distribution, and manufacturing support space close to the plant. In a tight market, that kind of space either exists nearby or it does not.
What did Polaris need?
Polaris needed hundreds of thousands of square feet of manufacturing grade support space within a short drive of its plant, available on the plant's timeline rather than a developer's.
Vehicle production does not wait for ground-up construction. When a plant running at scale needs overflow warehousing, distribution, and manufacturing support, the question is what is standing within a few miles. SouthPoint Business Park sits six miles from the Polaris plant, adjacent to I-65 and I-565 on the corridor connecting Nashville and Louisville to the north with Birmingham and Montgomery to the south.
How did The Hollingsworth Companies help?
Hollingsworth had built the right buildings ahead of demand. Polaris leased a newly constructed 404,000 square foot building in April 2021, and a second 405,000 square foot tilt wall building on its completion in April 2022.
Both buildings were built speculatively to manufacturing standards: 40 foot clear heights, 60 by 60 foot column spacing, 50 plus dock doors, ESFR sprinklers, and 6 inch reinforced floors. That specification is the difference between a warehouse shell and a building that can absorb manufacturing support work. Polaris took the first building the year it was finished and the second the month it was completed.
What were the results?
Polaris leased more than 800,000 square feet of Hollingsworth space at SouthPoint Business Park, and the second lease followed the first within a year.
Speculative development is a bet that the right building in the right place will find its user. Two buildings totaling more than 800,000 square feet, each leased to the same manufacturer as it came out of the ground, is that bet paying off twice. For companies evaluating the I-65 corridor, the Polaris buildings show what Hollingsworth builds before anyone asks.
Frequently asked questions
What buildings did Polaris lease from The Hollingsworth Companies?
Two buildings at SouthPoint Business Park near Huntsville, Alabama: a 404,000 square foot building leased in 2021 and a 405,000 square foot concrete tilt wall building leased on completion in 2022, together supporting Polaris's 920,000 square foot plant six miles away.
Are Hollingsworth's speculative buildings built to manufacturing standards?
Yes. The Polaris buildings feature 40 foot clear heights, 60 by 60 foot column spacing, 50 plus dock doors, ESFR sprinklers, and 6 inch reinforced floors.
Why did Polaris choose SouthPoint Business Park?
The park is six miles from Polaris's Huntsville plant, adjacent to I-65 and I-565, with large manufacturing grade buildings available when Polaris needed them.
Does Hollingsworth build large buildings speculatively?
Yes. Both Polaris buildings, each over 400,000 square feet, were built before a tenant was identified, and both leased as construction completed.