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Business park on its way Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell From left, Bill Pelton, Jeff Edwards and Jarrod Huggins, all of Klamath Falls, smooth the freshly poured aggregate and concrete entrance to InTransit's new Medford headquarters near the airport. New buildings have been springing up on Lear Way behind Lowe's and Wal-Mart, and InTransit's headquarters is one of the latest with more to come, according to the land's owner. By SHARI DOWNHILL Construction activity has gained momentum at the Crater Lake Business Center, a development project of Burrill Real Estate of Medford. Burrill kick-started the Crater Lake Business Center a year ago, completing infrastructure work on the commercial property that has been in the Burrill family since the early 1980s. At completion, likely within three to five years, Curt Burrill anticipates more than 200,000 square feet of office space will be created in the 20-acre Crater Lake Business Center. Situated behind Crater Lake Plaza near Highway 62, the business park project now includes a nearly complete 20,000-square-foot, two-story building that will house Medford-based InTransit, a national truck transportation broker. InTransit will likely move into its new building by mid-August, said Rob Lowe, InTransit spokesman. The company chose to build and relocate to Crater Lake Business Park to accommodate its growth and because of the accessibility of Lear Way, Lowe said. InTransit will occupy both stories of the building, with a call center taking almost half of the lower level. "We'll actually have a little elbow room," Lowe said. "It'll be kind of nice." Now, the company is split between a leased 5,000-square-foot facility in the Cobblestone Village complex off North Riverside Avenue, and a 7,500-square-foot building on Lear Way, the company's present corporate headquarters. InTransit employs about 100 people in the Medford area and 250 others in 45 locations across the country. Construction is underway on several other office buildings across Lear Way from the back of Wal-Mart, says Curt Burrill. Burrill Real Estate plans to move into half of a 4,500-square-foot office building by the end of June, Burrill said, with the other half available for lease. Cutler & Company, a Medford investment firm currently located on Airport Road, will soon move into a nearly completed 5,100-square-foot building. Express Personnel has leased half of a building on a lot facing and nearest to Lear Way, Burrill said. A State Farm Insurance agent purchased and developed a half-acre lot and plans to move his business from its present Crater Lake Avenue location sometime in July, Burrill said. The two other lots were sold to and are being developed by Laz Ayala, a local real estate developer. "In total, the six buildings (under construction) equal 26,000 square feet," Burrill said. In addition to the present construction, Burrill said permits have been secured and plans developed for another two-story, 22,250-square-foot office building that will be adjacent to InTransit's new site. Together they will form twin anchor buildings nearest the airport property line. "The nice thing about this park is obviously the view," Burrill said. "These buildings that are fronting up to the airport will always have a view of the airport. There won't be any construction between them to block the view." The "hybrid" plan for the realignment of Highway 62, if approved, would be the only construction that could possibly take place between Burrill's development and the airport, he said. If that plan is approved, the construction likely wouldn't start for eight to 10 years. Burrill plans to hold the balance of the business park's property for build-to-suit projects that blend with the overall office theme. Jeff and Teri Baptiste, owners of the new Gold's Gym fitness club off Lear Way, purchased land and built their business in anticipation of Burrill's business park. "I think it'll have a great effect on our business," Jeff Baptiste said. "We're within walking distance. And everybody needs to exercise." Reach reporter Shari Downhill at 776-4463, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.