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1.5 million sf distribution facility Aerial view of 1.5 million-square-foot General Mills distribution center in Social Circle, Georgia  |
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| — | Largest LEED Gold Industrial Building in the US |
| — | 1.5 Million-Square-Foot Distribution Facility near Atlanta, Georgia, Built to Suit for General Mills |
| — | Building served by Georgia Railroad and CSX Intermodal |
| — | Will handle 167 trucks per day, 5,000 per month |
Rockefeller Group Development Corporation built a 1.5 million-square-foot distribution center for General Mills in the City of Social Circle in Walton County, Georgia, 50 miles east of Atlanta. Site work on the project began in spring 2009 and was completed in May 2010.
The new facility will handle 167 trucks per day, 5,000 per month, to support the Southeast distribution operations of General Mills, one of the world's leading food companies. General Mills operates in over 100 countries and markets more than 100 consumer brands, including Cheerios, Häagen-Dazs, Nature Valley, Betty Crocker, Pillsbury, Green Giant, Old El Paso, and Progresso.
The building is the largest industrial one in the United States to earn LEED Gold certification, the second-highest designation a new building can receive from the US Green Building Council (USGBC). The building is also the second largest LEED Gold certified industrial building in the world.
RGDC and General Mills originally sought LEED-silver certification for the building. However, the number of credits accrued in five green design categories — sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources and indoor environmental quality — well exceeded the number of credits needed for LEED-silver.
RGDC built the facility on a 130-acre site on East Hightower Trail, which is served by Georgia Railroad and CSX Intermodal, making the location ideal for distribution.
The building is 2,322 feet long, almost a half mile, with 8 rail doors alongside the railroad and storage capacity for 500 trailers. According to real estate research firm PPR, the facility is the largest build-to-suit distribution center begun in 2009. It includes more than 25,000 square feet of office space to accommodate administrative operations for the site. General Mills has the option to expand the building by 143,000 square feet to a total of more than 1.6 million square feet.