Amazon leases massive warehouse near JFK Airport

Woodmere facility built by Wildflower will be retailer’s second largest on Long Island

Wildflower's Adam Gordon, a rendering of the JFK Logistics Center and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos (Wildflower, Getty)
Wildflower's Adam Gordon, a rendering of the JFK Logistics Center and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos (Wildflower, Getty)

Amazon has signed a lease to open yet another last-mile distribution center, this time in Woodmere.

Manhattan-based developer Wildflower had been granted $16 million in economic development incentives by the Town of Hempstead IDA to acquire the property and is constructing a warehouse for the e-commerce giant, Newsday reported.

The 422,000-square-foot, $76 million facility, dubbed the JFK Logistics Center, is on Rockaway Boulevard south of Kennedy Airport. It will be Amazon’s second largest in the region, bringing its planned warehouse space on Long Island to more than 1.4 million square feet.

“The jobs it will create to distribute products throughout the region will provide opportunities for our residents and help Long Island recover from the pandemic,” Hempstead Town Supervisor Don X. Clavin Jr. said in a statement to The Real Deal.

Sign Up for the undefined Newsletter

The delivery facility will replace an airport parking lot and is expected to bring at least 50 full-time jobs to the area in the first two years.

As part of the agreement, Amazon will also make a one-time $250,000 payment to the Lawrence Union Free School District.

“Having Amazon lease this site is huge. We’re looking forward to their arrival,” Frederick Parola, CEO of the Town of Hempstead Industrial Development Agency, said in a statement. “This property as a parking lot generated minimal taxes for the town and school district. Now it will be put to better use and provide tremendous economic benefits and employment opportunities.”

Wildflower is led by managing partner Adam Gordon. Its partners include Raphael De Niro, son of Robert De Niro, but the De Niros did not participate in the Woodmere deal.

Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly reported the square footage of the logistics center under construction.