Amazon's first AMXL fulfilment centre in Canada has completed construction and is now up and running, a spokesperson from Amazon Canada tells STOREYS.
The fulfilment centre, known as YYC6 Project Violin, is located at 9705 68 St SE in Calgary, southwest of where Glenmore Trail intersects with Stoney Trail SE. It's just a 10-minute walk north from YYC4 Project Maverick, a 2.6-million-sq.-ft warehouse that cost an estimated $400M to build.
"Amazon is pleased to announce that our first AMXL fulfilment centre in Canada, YYC6, opened on June 25th in Calgary," a spokesperson said. "YYC6 is specialized in the handling of heavy and bulky products, including BBQs, gym equipment, and mattresses."
According to the Government of Alberta, the new facility consists of 1.2 million sq. ft of space and cost an estimated $131M.
The YYC6 fulfilment centre at 9705 68 St SE in Calgary.(Courtesy of Amazon Canada)
Edmonton-based Clark Builders served as the contractor for the project, completing construction in a bit over a year, after the City of Calgary issued a building permit on February 8, 2022, while the developer is BC-based Beedie.
According to the City, the YYC6 project was the top construction project in the city that completed in Q2 2023 by construction value.
The second-highest project was a nearby build: a new Sofina Foods poultry facility valued at $75M and located between YYC6 and YYC4. All three projects are part of the East Shephard Industrial Park.
According to the Amazon spokesperson, YYC6 is the second fulfilment centre in Calgary, where the company also has a sortation centre, a delivery station, and an AMXL delivery station.
On the tech side, Amazon said in November 2021 that it would be opening a new Amazon Web Services cloud computing hub to service Western Canada in Calgary by late-2023 or early-2024 as part of an estimated $4.3B investment in the Calgary region planned across a 15-year period.
The Calgary Industrial Market
According to Avison Young's latest industrial market report, Calgary's industrial market has had a slower year in 2023 but remains healthy, despite a limited amount of available space.
"Relative to the frantic pace Calgary’s industrial market saw in 2022, market activity in the first two quarters of 2023 has decreased," said Avison Young. "Net absorption has leveled off from the record-breaking previous year as overall vacancy has risen."
The overall industrial vacancy rate hit 2.46% in Q2 2023.
"Limited inventory in the region will continue to sustain both lease rates and sale prices, which bodes well for Calgary’s industrial market," Avison Young added. "Outside pressures aside, industrial continues to be a preferred asset category among all investor types and Calgary is situated as a preferred destination for future growth."
According to the brokerage, there is approximately 5.25 million sq. ft of industrial space currently under construction, with an additional 4.92 million sq. ft set to be approved.
