< Previous218 MAY 2019 SI T E S E L E C T IO NWestern Union’sHQ searchdidn’t stray far.by JOHN MCCURRYe ditor @site s ele c tion.comSometimes the hometown advantage in corporate real estate strategy, like the home-fi eld advantage in sports, can be a decider. For venerable Western Union, the only real decision in its recent headquarters search saga was where in the burgeoning Denver metro area it would locate. If there were ever any doubt, the undertaking’s name, Project Hometown, was an accurate statement of the global money mover’s intent. Western Union traces its history in the Denver area back to , and the opening of a telegraph offi ce. A merger brought the company’s global headquarters fi rst to Greenwood Village in and then to Englewood. As David Hurtado, Western Union’s vice president of global strategic sourcing and corporate real estate, describes, LIKE HOMEST A TE SPO TLIGHTColoradoNO PLACEJOHN MCCURRYe ditor @site s ele c tion.comrecent headquarters search saga was where in the burgeoning Denver metro area it would locate. If there were ever any doubt, the undertaking’s name, Project Hometown, was an accurate statement of the global money Western Union traces its history in the by JOHN MCCURRYe ditor @site s ele c tion.comrecent headquarters search saga was where in the burgeoning Denver metro area it would locate. If there were ever any doubt, the undertaking’s name, Project Hometown, was an accurate statement of the global money mover’s intent. Western Union traces its history in the ometimes the hometown advantage in corporate real estate strategy, like the home-fi eld advantage in sports, can be a decider. For venerable Western Union, the only real decision in its recent headquarters search saga was where in sourcing and corporate real estate, describes, Denver area back to , and the opening of a telegraph offi ce. A merger brought the company’s global headquarters fi rst to Greenwood Village in and then to Englewood. As David Hurtado, Western Union’s vice president of global strategic Western Union’ssearchdidn’t stray far.Sometimes the hometown advantage in corporate real estate strategy, like the home-fi eld advantage in sports, can be a decider. For venerable Western Union, the only real decision in its recent headquarters search saga was where in sourcing and corporate real estate, describes, Denver area back to , and the opening of a telegraph offi ce. A merger brought the company’s global headquarters fi rst to Greenwood Village in and then to Englewood. As David Hurtado, Western Union’s vice president of global strategic Western Union’sHQ searchdidn’t stray far.Collaborative workspaces ll the interior of Western Union’s new headquarters.Photo courtesy of Gensler/Ryan Gobuty220 MAY 2019 SI T E S E L E C T IO NEnglewood was a pastoral setting and the company wanted to establish its brand within a more urban setting.Hurtado says a big handful of things are attractive about the company’s new campus. Not surprisingly, the ability to mine Colorado’s diverse talent pool is chief among them. He notes the new location in Denver’s Tech center is a LEED-Gold building and is on the city’s light rail system, two sustainability factors he says are important to the company’s Denver employees.“Denver attracts top talent due in large part to Colorado’s investment in higher education,” Hurtado says. “We have very supportive government policies and processes in Colorado, so it’s very attractive for businesses to be here. We felt such a strong connection to Colorado.” e site also off ers good transportation options to Denver International Airport, which in turn off ers direct connections to Western Union’s sites around the globe. e scenery viewable from the -story tower known as One Belleview Station, near the intersection of Interstates and , is not bad either: ere’s a panoramic view of the Rockies to the west, and to the south Pike’s Peak is visible. e search, limited to the Denver area, took about six months, followed by another months to design, build out the space in the new building, and move in. About , people work there now. e campus includes a second building on the other side of the Interstate. at ,-sq.-ft. (,-sq.-m.) facility, which has an interior design similar to the headquarters building, is home to about employees and houses Western Union’s compliance department. Hurtado says the search ultimately did not cover a broad swath of the Denver metro area.“We had very few fi nalists because of the nature of the site and the location,” Hurtado says. “We decided early on that we wanted Denver to be our hometown. ere wasn’t a lot of eff ort to move further north because our employee base lives in the southern and southeastern portions of the city.”Western Union worked with the Gensler architectural fi rm to put a unique stamp on the headquarters’ interior aimed at connecting people. Hurtado says the design process accomplished three key goals: providing maximum natural lighting within the facility, establishing ergonomic work stations and creating an environment providing easy interaction, thus enabling innovation. “When you stand in the hallways and in most work stations, you can see outside the building,” Hurtado says. No. 6 in green building, with nearly 114 projects newly certifi ed in 2018.3.4 sq. ft. per capitaColorado ranks&Source: U.S Green Building CouncilWestern Union’s internal real estate team and its executive leadership guided the process. Hurtado says the project was an amazing eff ort that came together quickly through expedited design review and approval.“It was probably one of the greatest projects I’ve ever been a part of,” Hurtado says. “We leveraged to an amazing extent our internal and external communications teams and had a very successful change management process, involving our employee base in all of our decisions through lunch-and-learns and workshops showing examples of what the new technology would be. So it made it a very smooth and successful project.” S I T E S E L E C T I O N MAY 2019 221Denver attracts top talent due in large part to Colorado’s investment in higher education.” — David Hurtado, Vice President of Global Strategic Sourcing and Corporate Real Estate, Western UnionGREA T LAKESGREA T LAKESAbandoned auto plants need not always meet the bulldozers.GM’s announced decision to close fi ve auto plants hit hardest in the Great Lakes region, home to three aff ected assembly operations and one of two transmission plants slated for closure.If history serves as a guide, however, there’s a better-than-even chance that a shuttered auto plant can return to economic viability, according to fi gures provided by Valerie Sathe Brugeman, assistant director of transportation systems at the Ann Arbor–based Center for Automotive Research (CAR). e Center estimates that out of U.S. auto plants closed since , have been repurposed for uses as varied as manufacturing, food production, education, distribution and the fi lm, TV and video industry. e Great Lakes region has led the way in re-imagining hollowed-out behemoths such as the Studebaker plant in South Bend, Indiana, which produced its last vehicle in . Once a broken symbol of a city’s decline, the -acre (-hectare) complex is undergoing redevelopment as a technology hub, conceived to be the biggest in the Midwest.Why Not Another Auto Plant?In , offi cials from a little-known electric vehicle startup arrived in Normal, Illinois, to scout equipment left behind at the Mitsubishi Motors North America plant, which had ceased production the previous year and was slated for demolition. After discerning the plant’s potential, the startup engaged with local authorities about buying the whole facility. Having purchased the plant from a liquidator for the bargain-basement price of $ million (for reference, Mazda-Toyota plans to spend $. billion on its new Alabama by G ARY DAUGHTERSgar y.daughter s@site selection.com222 MAY 2019 SI T E S E L E C T IO Nfacility), Rivian Automotive is now an emerging success story. e stealthy startup announced a $-million investment from Amazon in February after unveiling its prototypes to great fanfare in November.Past Successes, Future DreamsSimilar stories abound. In Moraine, Ohio, Chinese-owned Fuyao Glass America employs more than twice as many people at a former GM auto plant than GM did. A former GM Delphi plant in Coopersville, Michigan, now houses two dairy plants that have invested some $ million in new facilities and equipment over the past fi ve years. Ford’s Batavia Transmission in Batavia, Ohio, closed in , is now the University of Cincinnati Clermont College’s East Campus. Williams International, which makes small engines for the aerospace industry, is creating some jobs at a former GM truck plant that closed in Pontiac, Michigan, in .“ e biggest common thread for success,” says Brugeman, “is to have a group of community leaders who are willing to say ‘OK, this is bad news. Now what? What’s best here for the community?’ ”In Detroit, plans by a Spanish developer to transform the iconic Packard Plant into a vast, mixed-use facility are moving slowly. e -acre (-hectare) site, riddled with asbestos, has suff ered under the weight of severe neglect since the last car was built in .“It’s a staggering undertaking, but we’ve gotten it off the ground,” says real estate attorney Joe Kopietz, spokesman for Fernando Palazuelo, who bought the plant at auction in for $,.Supporters speak of creating “a city within a city.” Total costs may reach $ million.“ is is more than just the Packard Project,” says Kopietz. “We’re looking at to distinct, inter-related projects over the next to years.” (Opposite) Detroit’s abandoned Packard plant is being revived as a “city within a city.”Source: Yvette van der Velde/Packard Plant Project S I T E S E L E C T I O N MAY 2019 223Union Paci c’s e railroad observes 150 years as an economic engine.On May , Union Pacifi c will observe its th anniversary by recreating the photo taken May , , when the last spike was driven into place at Promontory Point, creating America’s fi rst intercontinental railroad. Historic steam locomotives will be on hand. at will be the primary observance, but communities across Utah will take time to mark the anniversary. e Union Pacifi c Railroad has been vital to Utah’s economy for years. With , miles (, km.) of track and an annual payroll of $. million, it has been a catalyst for growth throughout the state. From to , the railroad invested more than $ million in Utah’s transportation infrastructure. “In a lot of ways, Union Pacifi c and the communities it serves have grown up together,” says Nathan Anderson, Union Pacifi c’s senior director, public aff airs, for Utah. “We have strong relationships with those communities. What we are celebrating, really, is the opportunity to execute the kind of trade that brings ideas and culture and goods and services across the state.”Union Pacifi c has developed important infrastructure across Utah, including the $ million Salt Lake City Intermodal Terminal. Anderson says Union Pacifi c is looking for opportunities to expand the use of its network where it make sense. He says the railroad is working on several projects it has to keep under wraps for now.“Ultimately, these projects will allow growth without putting more traffi c on the roads,” Anderson says. Recent SuccessesIn Salt Lake City, the state recently welcomed an announcement by San Francisco-based fi nancial technology company plaid that it will open an engineering hub, adding to the city’s information technology and fi nancial by JOHN MCCURRYe ditor @ site s ele c tion.c omST A TE SPO TLIGHTUtahUtah’s transportation infrastructure. In a lot of ways, Union Pacifi c and the communities it serves have grown up together.” — Nathan Anderson, Senior Director, Public Affairs, for Utah, Union Paci c, on the occasion of the railroad’s sesquicentennial in May224 MAY 2019 SI T E S E L E C T IO NPhoto courtesy of GettyImagesAnderson, Union Pacifi c’s senior wraps for now.welcomed an announcement by San Union Pacifi c and the communities it grown Public Affairs, for Utah, Union Paci c, Big Utah Stakeservices cluster. Plaid’s technology allows consumers to connect their bank accounts to digital fi nancial services applications. e fi rm plans to hire engineers by the end of the year to populate a ,-sq.-ft. (,-sq.-m.) offi ce downtown.“Plaid is adding the best and brightest talent to facilitate an ‘everybody wins’ fi nancial system where technological innovation, protection of personal data, and consumer choice and control are all possible,” says Kira Booth, who will head the engineering team. “Plaid is focused on laying the foundation for fi ntech for decades to come, and is excited to lay down roots in a location that is equally as invested in the future of engineering and innovation.”Another recent project and a big FDI win drawn to the state is an operations hub in Ogden planned by Swedish food and beverage manufacturer Oatly, which develops and produces oat-based drinks and foods. Its fl agship product is its oatmilk, an original oat-based drink produced using patented enzyme technology that turns oats into nutritional liquid food.“As a -year-old company, we’ve been blown away by the enthusiasm and incredible demand for Oatly that we’ve seen here in the States over the past few years,” says Oatly U.S. General Manager Mike Messersmith “ rough this partnership with the state of Utah, our upcoming factory in Ogden will help us keep oatmilk in all the many coff ee shops, grocery stores and refrigerators that want it.” e company worked with Atlas A train loaded with containers leaves Union Paci c’s intermodal terminal in Salt Lake City.Photo courtesy of Union Paci cInsight LLC, a site selection firm based in New Jersey, to help with its location decision. The company ultimately chose an available food-grade facility at Business Depot Ogden as a turnkey solution for the company. Oatly plans to create up to 50 jobs over the next seven years. One of the state’s biggest projects in recent years comes from a homegrown company, Merit Medical, which is investing $505 million in a massive expansion that will create more than 1,000 jobs. Merit is a leading manufacturer and marketer of disposable medical devices used in intervention, diagnostic and therapeutic medical procedures.“We are hiring students from our state’s great institutions of higher education as engineers, mathematicians, statisticians, marketing and business professionals,” says Fred P. Lampropoulos, Merit Medical chairman and CEO. “We are committed to growing our business with local talent in all areas.” Union Pacific in Utah2018 Fast Facts Miles of Track 1,268 Annual Payroll $124.2 million In-State Purchases $110.5 million Capital Investment $58.7 million Community Giving $456,700 Employees 1,284 U.S. Jobs Supported* 11,556 *Each American freight rail job supports nine jobs elsewhere in the U.S. economy, according to the Association of American RailroadsNext >