RICHMOND BIZSENSE- April 19, 2023
“The stage is being set for Feed More’s pending move to Henrico, as the regional food bank recently closed on a seven-figure deal for the site of its future home near St. Joseph’s Villa, while its current complex near The Diamond has officially hit the market.
The local nonprofit paid $1.5 million for the 9-acre site at 8020 Villa Park Drive, where it’s planning a new $40 million facility to replace its current headquarters at 1415 and 1603 Rhoadmiller St.
The Villa Park deal closed April 4, according to Henrico property records, which list the purchase price at over $1.52 million. The county assessed the wooded site at $830,700.
The seller was Commonwealth Foundation for Cancer Research, a charitable organization led by Bill and Alice Goodwin. Bill Goodwin’s Riverstone Properties previously owned the property, which was gifted to the foundation last year.
The site is located between the Villa Park I building that houses Labcorp and the former Colortree printing plant that’s now home to Moore-owned Richmond Print Group. The site would be accessed via an existing driveway that serves Richmond Print Group and the nearby Brown Distributing facility.
The land deal sets the stage for Project Nourish, the code-named development that’s planned to consist of a 124,000-square-foot distribution warehouse, providing about 25 percent more space than its current complex. Plans for the project were submitted to the county in February.
Feed More was represented in the deal by Joe Marchetti, who with Colliers colleague Rebecca Barricklow recently listed Feed More’s Rhoadmiller properties for sale.
The listing, which markets the complex as a redevelopment opportunity, does not include an asking price for the properties, a pair of century-old buildings totaling nearly 90,000 square feet.
Consisting of a former tobacco warehouse and part of another, the complex spans 6 acres adjacent to the interstate and across Rhoadmiller from The Park at RVA entertainment venue. It’s also just blocks from the 67-acre Diamond District redevelopment site and next door to the 41-acre assemblage that’s planned to house the VCU Athletics Village.
The main Rhoadmiller building was last purchased in 1999 for $1.35 million and is assessed by the city at $5.81 million. Feed More purchased the 1.5-acre property it also owns next door in 2012 for $850,000. That property is assessed at $1.81 million.
CEO Doug Pick has said Feed More does not need to sell the Rhoadmiller site for the Villa Park project, which would be covered through fundraising. He projected the new facility’s cost at between $35 million and $40 million.
Pending county approvals, Feed More is aiming to start the project in August and anticipates a 14-month construction schedule. It would relocate once the new building is complete in late 2024.
Hourigan is developing the Villa Park project and was selected last month as the general contractor. Architecture firm Baskervill is designing the project, and Timmons Group is the engineer.”
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