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The best use for the closed I-X Center next to Cleveland Hopkins International Airport and just off I-480 in Cleveland may include distribution, according to a local commercial real estate professional. The 2.2 million-square-foot building on the west side of the airport would be "perfect for distribution," says Matt Beesley , a principal at Cushman & Wakefield | CRESCO Real Estate. The I-X Center in Cleveland, one of the largest convention centers nationwide, closed this week after 35 years of operation because of the coronavirus pandemic. Cleveland owns the massive building that began its life in 1942 as the Cleveland Bomber Plant. A new life as a distribution center may be a potential use for the building. The industrial segment has been the only bright spot in the local commercial real estate market since retail stores, restaurants and offices began closing in March because of the pandemic. E-commerce, food and beverage, and third-party logistics companies have been aggressively leasing large blocks of space in the Cleveland area from which to fulfill local orders or shipments, the Cleveland office of Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. (NYSE: JLL) said in its Industrial Outlook — Cleveland report in July. At that time, local developers were creating manufacturing, production, R&D, storage and distribution space in Greater Cleveland to answer historically low vacancy rates, JLL said in its report. During a recent interview, Beesley of CRESCO Real Estate talked about what makes good distribution space for the likes of ecommerce giant Amazon and shipping company FedEx. "The nature of distribution centers has changed over the years, and it continues to change," Beesley said. For instance, the way we heat and light the centers, the size of their dock doors, and the depth and flatness of their concrete floors have all changed in the last few […]