A rendering of the ‘Project Rocky’ fulfillment center planned for Amazon in Rockville. (File images courtesy Goochland County)
A year after it was said to be scrapped, the massive “Project Rocky” fulfillment center is back on in Goochland County and is now clearly tied to its end-user: e-commerce giant Amazon.
An entity called Amazon.com Services LLC purchased the 105-acre site in Goochland’s Rockville area for $16.5 million in a multiparcel sale that recorded with the county Dec. 2, according to the Goochland Circuit Court clerk’s office.
The LLC lists a Seattle address tied to Amazon, which is headquartered in Seattle and in Crystal City, Virginia.
Weeks before the purchase, applications for building permits were filed with Goochland for a nearly identical project to what was approved through zoning for “Project Rocky,” a massive distribution facility that would fill 60 acres of the site. The facility was likened to “Project Speedway,” the codename for the 2.7-million-square-foot center near Richmond Raceway that opened earlier this year.
The Amazon facility along Richmond Henrico Turnpike came online last fall and officially opened in March. (BizSense file photo)
While Amazon was never explicitly said to be the end-user for “Project Rocky,” last week’s land purchase makes the arrangement clear. On Tuesday, a spokesperson for Amazon confirmed the company made the purchase.
California-based Panattoni Development Co. is once again driving the Rockville facility, which is described in the applications as a five-level building totaling 3.1 million square feet of space – 400,000 square feet larger than the facility by the raceway.
The applications put the Rockville building at $350 million and describe the interior as including a robotic mezzanine and warehouse. The descriptions indicate that the facility, like the raceway fulfillment center and another in Suffolk, will use robotics technology designed to assist employees in sorting, packaging and shipping smaller goods such as books, electronics and household items.
Also requested from Goochland is a permit for a 160-square-foot retaining wall, projected to cost $1.6 million. Both permit applications are under review by county staff.
The latest site plan for the Rockville facility off Ashland Road. (County documents)
When the project was first proposed two years ago, a county staff report put the total investment in the site at “well over $500 million.”
The facility was described at that time as employing about 1,000 workers across two shifts, operating 24-7 and including 55 loading docks, over 400 trailer parking spaces and over 1,700 employee parking spaces.
The project would add traffic signals at its entrance off Ashland Road and at the nearby Interstate 64 interchange, which is planned to be later upgraded to a diverging diamond design. Driveways for nearby Luck Stone facilities would also be relocated as part of the project.
If approved administratively, the development would be able to go forward without further approvals from the county, as Panattoni secured zoning approval for the project from Goochland supervisors in 2022.
A year later, county officials said the developer was no longer pursuing the project and had informed them that it would not be closing on the site. Earlier this year, the land was put up for sale and co-marketed by the county with an asking price of $18.5 million.
Outlined in yellow, the 105-acre site at 1990 Ashland Road is between two quarries in Goochland’s Rockville area. (Taylor Long Properties marketing flyer)
The collective assessment of the parcels that make up the site is $8.7 million, according to the circuit clerk’s office. The four parcels were previously owned by successor trustees for Nancy Bailey and James Nuckols Jr.
Located between the Martin Marietta and Luck Stone quarries, the site is within an area of Goochland identified as the county’s industrial corridor. Surrounding properties also include the Rockville Commerce Industrial Park, home to Midnight Brewery and other businesses.
A timeline for the facility is not known. A request to Amazon for comment was returned by a company spokesman who confirmed the land purchase but did not provide details about the project.
The fulfillment center is planned to total 3.1 million square feet of space and include 55 loading docks and over 2,000 parking spaces for trailers and employees.
Sara Worley, Goochland’s economic development director, acknowledged that work on “Project Rocky” has resumed and said the county is glad to have it back.
“We’re excited that it’s moving forward,” Worley said.
Panattoni is again working on the project with Reston-based engineering firm Bowman and architect Ceso, headquartered in Ohio. Local attorney Andy Condlin with Roth Jackson Gibbons Condlin is representing Panattoni in its filings with the county.