Crow Holdings partnered with Alston Construction to transform a speculative industrial warehouse into a high-performance cold storage and distribution facility serving the Northeast Philadelphia region. Initially conceived as a standard core-and-shell warehouse, the 150,000 SF structure evolved mid-construction when a national food distribution company secured the lease and required a specialized cold storage fit-out to support its Chick-fil-A product distribution operations.
Alston delivered a comprehensive 60,000 SF cold storage program—featuring freezer space, cooler rooms, and cold docks—along with 10,000 SF of office, receiving, and truck maintenance areas. The remaining space continued as dry storage. With stringent food safety requirements and a fast-tracked occupancy date driving every decision, the project demanded precision coordination, specialty quality control, and exceptional schedule management.
Client Priorities
Speed to Market
The tenant needed to begin product distribution from the facility as quickly as possible, making schedule adherence the most critical success factor. Any issue that risked delaying refrigeration start-up or occupancy had to be quickly resolved.
Quality and Compliance
As a food distribution facility, the project required strict adherence to FDA standards and robust quality control, particularly for all insulated metal panel (IMP) installations, penetrations, high-speed doors, and refrigeration zone separations.
Seamless Tenant Integration
Because the program shifted to cold storage during construction, continuous coordination between the developer, tenant, architect (M&H), engineers (Stoneridge) and Alston was essential to align expectations and avoid rework.
Challenges & Solutions
Coordinating Multiple Stakeholders
With the developer’s design team, tenant representatives and specialty subcontractors all engaged concurrently, Alston led proactive coordination to resolve design discrepancies and field conditions—particularly around cold storage detailing such as penetrations and interface points.
Refrigeration Equipment Timing
The refrigeration contractor’s delivery of penthouse units and mechanical skid drove the overall schedule. Alston sequenced upstream work —IMPs, doors, fire alarm tie-ins and electrical to ensure refrigeration start-up could begin on the target date.
Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS) Delay
A critical late-stage challenge arose when the tenant’s ATS unit faced multi-month delivery delays. Without a functioning ATS, the building could not be energized, inspected, or turned over.
Alston’s solution:
- • Designed a temporary ATS/Generator configuration with the electrical contractor and supplier
- • Coordinated approvals with the City of Philadelphia (AHJ)
- • Aligned cost and schedule with the developer and tenant
- • Implemented the temporary solution, maintaining the turnover date
Project Delivery & Timeline
Originally started as a speculative building, the core-and-shell work began in spring 2024. When the lease was signed mid-construction, Alston collaborated with the developer’s design team to integrate the cold storage program into the existing structure.
Key milestones included:
- • Winter 2024–Spring 2025: Cold storage design and permitting
- • May 2025: TI building permit issued; full fit-out begins
- • May–October 2025: Installation of IMPs, freezer/cooler systems, mechanical skid, penthouse refrigeration units, and supporting infrastructure
- • October 2025: Refrigeration systems activated; temperature draw-down begins
- • October 24, 2025: TCO achieved; tenant occupancy begins
Despite major scope shifts, the project reached substantial completion on the agreed-upon timeline. This collaborative problem-solving became a defining success story for the project.
Key Takeaways
The McNulty Road project demonstrates Alston Construction’s ability to:
- • Pivot quickly when tenant needs evolve mid-construction, delivering move-in on the required date
- • Manage highly technical cold storage requirements with strict quality controls
- • Execute Alston’s first cold storage project in Pennsylvania successfully—showcasing adaptability and capability
- • Overcome supply chain challenges through proactive planning and collaboration
- • Deliver complex industrial work at speed without compromising quality or safety
- • Maintain strong safety performance, including a clean OSHA inspection, and support the tenant through product move-in
This project stands as a model of Alston’s versatility in the industrial and cold storage market, particularly when fast-track delivery and specialty systems integration are critical to client success.