Kansas City Industrial Real Estate: Central U.S. Distribution Advantages in a Constrained Market 

Anthony James serves as senior vice president and Kansas City market officer for Link Logistics, where he oversees a diverse portfolio of warehouses and industrial properties. With four years managing the Kansas City market, Anthony helps businesses leverage the region's central U.S. location. His expertise spans both traditional above-ground industrial properties and Link Logistics’ local underground facilities, which offer unique temperature-controlled warehouse solutions. In this Q&A, Anthony discusses Kansas City's geographic advantages, tight market conditions, and how limited supply is creating opportunities for businesses seeking warehouse space for lease. 

What's driving demand for industrial real estate in Kansas City right now? 

Anthony: Kansas City's central location, skilled labor pool and robust transportation infrastructure make it an ideal distribution and logistics hub. Companies can reach roughly 85% of the U.S. population within a two-day truck drive from Kansas City. We also have a major air cargo presence. That geographic advantage is significant for businesses focused on speed and efficiency. 

E-commerce growth continues to push demand for modern distribution centers and fulfillment facilities. Retailers, third-party logistics providers and manufacturers all need space that helps them reach customers faster. Kansas City's location and affordability make it attractive for these users. 

We’re also seeing more big national warehouse users coming to Kansas City and driving demand, with some major projects in 2025 really helping to tighten vacancy. Panasonic is building over 4.7 million square feet for their EV battery manufacturing facility in DeSoto, Kansas, just half an hour outside Kansas City. Amazon is getting ready to open a 630,000-square-foot distribution center. Ace Hardware now has 1.5 million square feet supporting distribution to its retail locations in the Kansas City area. Coca-Cola has another 700,000 square feet that it uses for production. Use cases like these can then attract ancillary networks of suppliers and partners—the Panasonic facility should attract a lot of auto industry suppliers. 

What's one major trend or development in the Kansas City warehouse market that businesses should know about? 

Anthony: The industrial real estate vacancy rate in Kansas City is among the lowest across the top 30 U.S. industrial markets. It’s also the lowest it's been in the four years I've been overseeing the Kansas City market. 

What's driving this is limited speculative construction. Kansas City only has about 1.5 million square feet of spec space currently under construction, so near-term supply is constrained. We've also seen a number of large bulk deals get completed in the marketplace, which has helped solidify the overall low vacancy rate. 

This constrained environment is expected to keep vacancy low into 2026 and continue placing moderate upward pressure on rents. The market is favoring build-to-suit and expansion activity by creditworthy users rather than speculative development. At a time when a lot of other markets are seeing higher vacancy, Kansas City has actually seen it go down. So that’s absolutely something to be aware of for companies considering warehouse space in Kansas City.  

How does Link Logistics support companies looking for warehouse space in Kansas City? 

Anthony: Link Logistics has a truly unique offering in our portfolio of underground Kansas City warehouse space, which totals 6.8 million square feet. We can provide spaces across a range of sizes that serve major manufacturing, e-commerce and distribution users. That ability to deliver a wide range of space configurations under flexible lease terms represents something you won't find elsewhere in the Kansas City industrial market.  

The underground warehouse facilities offer significant operational advantages. The temperature year-round stays around 70 degrees, which means operating costs are substantially lower than above-ground warehouses. Most underground tenants, once they lease space, stay in place because of these cost savings and the stable environment. 

As vacancy tightens across Kansas City and new supply remains limited, this adaptability positions our underground facilities as an increasingly attractive alternative for users seeking efficient warehouse space. We support a diverse and stable customer base underground in Kansas City, including government customers who represent a little over a third of our portfolio here. 

We're also offering flexibility that's hard to find elsewhere. We'll do short-term deals—one- to two-year leases—to help companies get into space quickly, with the expectation that once they experience the underground's benefits, they'll stay long-term. 

What warehouse space is currently available in Kansas City? 

Anthony: We have significant space becoming available over the next year that will give us the ability to accommodate large users, due to factors including a major tenant consolidation. This means Link Logistics will be able to lease large blocks of space to bulk warehouse users. We’re currently talking with two separate 3PL companies that could collectively lease up a good chunk of that available space in 2026. 

Looking ahead, what opportunities do you see for businesses considering Kansas City for their warehouse and logistics operations? 

Anthony: Kansas City offers three key advantages: flexible lease terms, lower overall cost of occupancy, and space to grow with flexible expansion options. 

The combination of Kansas City's central U.S. location—reaching most of the country within two days—along with the current low vacancy and limited new supply creates a strong market for businesses that need to establish or expand distribution operations. The build-to-suit activity we're seeing from major national companies validates Kansas City's position as a critical logistics hub. 

For companies willing to consider underground warehouse space, the operating cost advantages are substantial, and with the spaces that we have coming available soon, there's real opportunity to secure efficient warehouse facilities in a market where supply is otherwise very constrained. 

Explore available warehouse and distribution space in Kansas City to learn more about industrial real estate opportunities in the central United States.