Construction is well underway on a massive, $80 million air cargo facility at Milwaukee's Mitchell International Airport designed to help Wisconsin manufacturers.
TMJ4'S Charles Benson first reported on this project a year ago and was invited back Thursday to get an update. The new air cargo facility, still under construction, is big enough to hold seven football fields.
Jake Calgaro loves to watch the planes come and go at the airport’s observation area. Soon, he will be able to see much larger planes, as the possibility includes long-haul triple sevens.
"It's one of my favorite spots to just kind of chill, watch the planes fly," Calgaro said.
Jack Rabenn is with Crow Holdings, the company behind the project. He said it is a "build it, and they will come" development to attract Wisconsin manufacturers to use this facility, rather than going to Chicago.
Watch: TMJ4 tours $80M air cargo facility under construction at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport
He says these types of facilities exist in the Chicago area, but this will be unique to Wisconsin.
"Wisconsin has never had a modern cargo facility to accommodate wide-bodied aircraft," Rabenn said.
"It's bringing the supply chain through here, so it's making it more efficient for those existing groups and then providing an amenity for new groups that are trying to come to Wisconsin and set up shop," Rabenn said.
The new cargo hub is being built on the former 440th Airlift Wing site.
On Thursday, Airport Director Brian Dranzik and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley got a look at the progress.
"We're not only creating jobs and creating more efficiency, but all of this is coming at zero cost to local taxpayers here in Milwaukee County," Crowley said.
More air cargo planes landing means more revenue for the airport.
"We project that to be about $2.3, maybe $2.5 million. That'll help lower the cost for operators like Southwest, United, some of our carrier base here, and that makes us more competitive for our service in the future," Dranzik said.
There is still work to be done, including landing contracts with those who will use the cargo hub. The hope is to have the place built and ready by the fall.
This story was reported on-air by Charles Benson and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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