Kaiser Steel Mill
Fontana, CA | 2001 - 2003
The first fully integrated steel production and rolling mill west of the Rockies, the 1,200-acre Kaiser Steel Mill in Fontana, California, began operating in 1942 and was shuttered in 1983. Following Kaiser Steel’s bankruptcy, California Steel Industries (CSI) acquired the rolling mill, and continues to operate the rolling mill to process and produce steel products, while Penske Corporation converted a portion of the property into the California Speedway (now Auto Club Speedway).
The remaining 588 acres of this former industrial landmark was transformed into the Kaiser Commerce Center, a premier logistics and distribution hub serving Southern California’s Inland Empire. LandBank, a pioneering brownfield development company founded by RE | Solutions (RES) principals, negotiated with Kaiser Ventures, the bankruptcy entity, for the purchase of the property. RES principals led environmental due diligence, structured a risk management program, and attracted private investment from Catellus Development Corporation (CDC) for the acquisition and development of the property.
RES played a key role in advancing the project from concept to construction. The team assisted LEG in negotiations and due diligence with the prior owner, Ports America (Oaktree Capital Management), then managed environmental and risk-management activities associated with the purchase. As project manager for horizontal development, RES oversaw, site grading, and strategic filling operations to elevate the property above post-Sandy flood levels while implementing robust environmental controls and infrastructure upgrades.
Today, the Bayonne Logistics Center includes construction of over 1.2 million square feet of state-of-the-art warehouse and distribution space designed to support port-related logistics operations. Demonstrating a continued commitment to sustainable, economically impactful redevelopment of former industrial and military sites.
