New logistics company HQ in Elgin to feature driver dorm rooms, other amenities
With the ground already broken and construction underway, ceremonial dirt was turned over Thursday for a new state-of-the-art logistics company headquarters in Elgin.
The $15 million project at 1425 Madeline Lane, just off Big Timber Road about a mile west of Randall Road, will be the home of GoldCoast Logistics Group. The company had been headquartered in Wood Dale until moving to Randall Point Business Park in Elgin temporarily last year in anticipation of the new building.
GoldCoast Logistics president and founder Dragos Sprinceana said the company considered many locations in the suburbs before settling on Elgin.
The company was aided in its selection of the Madeleine Lane site by broker NAI Hiffman.
"I've seen a lot of industrial parks, and this one had everything I was looking for," Sprinceana said before the ceremony. "I was dreaming of finding a place like this."
The facility will include a 38,000-square-foot warehouse and 23,000 square feet of office space. Taking a page from Silicon Valley companies, the location will feature amenities and details not typically found in industrial properties to help attract and keep employees.
"The office space will feature a three-story glass curtain wall that Sprinceana said will make it look like "the Apple Store of the trucking industry."
There will also be a rooftop deck for working and socializing, a two-story atrium with steel-and-glass stair, four break rooms, a cigar room, a spa and workout area featuring dry and wet saunas, interior and exterior workout zones that open to the main street and offer a view of a nearby pond, and a half-sized basketball court.
In what they say is among the first of its kind in their industry, the building will have a space for drivers who need overnight accommodations. The area will feature 26 dormitory rooms with two floors of flex space for watching TV, playing table games and relaxing.
"This new building represents our growth as a company and our optimism about continued success in this sector, and we're grateful to PANCOR and NAI Hiffman for their partnership in creating a new state-of-the-art headquarters," Sprinceana said. "This is a new model of industrial space for a company of our size," Sprinceana said. "One that recognizes that employees in every sector want downtown-style amenities."
With the recent rise of e-commerce, GoldCoast Logistics has grown from 250 employees and one location in 2018 to 700 employees in Elgin, Florida and Arizona. Its truck fleet has more than quadrupled. The company expects to employ 900 and reach $200 million in revenue by the end of 2021.
Elgin Area Chamber President Carol Gieske said the company will be adding 50 jobs with the new headquarters. Construction in Elgin is expected to be completed by December.
In addition to Sprinceana, speakers at the groundbreaking included Kelly Disser, executive vice president for industrial services at NAI Hiffman; Tony Lucenko, director, Elgin Development Group; and John Steffen, member, Elgin City Council.