Mar 19, 2018

Gotham Greens Breaks Ground on Second Chicago Greenhouse Location

On March 15, Gotham Greens broke ground on a new 140,000 square foot greenhouse in the Pullman District of Chicago, Illinois.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel joined Gotham Greens founders Viraj Puri and Eric Haley and community leaders in Pullman to break ground on what will be Chicago’s largest agricultural greenhouse. The new greenhouse will create approximately 60 permanent and 70 construction jobs and strengthen Pullman’s ongoing renaissance.

The new facility will produce local, premium quality vegetables and herbs year-round for retailers, restaurants and institutional food service customers. Using state-of-the art growing methods that include hydroponics, evaporative cooling systems and renewable energy resources, the $12.6 million complex is expected to produce approximately 30 times the yield of conventional agriculture per acre while using 10 percent of the water.

“Gotham Greens’ decision to double down and build a second greenhouse is a vote of confidence in Chicago and another sign of the economic renaissance underway in the historic Pullman community,” Emanuel said. “Pullman’s historic past is matched only by its growing economic resurgence today, thanks to partners like Gotham Greens.”

The expansion reflects the company’s success growing and selling premium quality produce year-round in technologically advanced indoor farms. Besides its Pullman locations, Gotham Greens currently owns three greenhouses in New York City and has several facilities in development in other U.S. cities.

“We’re producing millions of pounds of fresh produce annually for national and local grocery stores and foodservice operators across Chicagoland, far exceeding our expectations,” saidViraj Puri, co-founder and CEO at Gotham Greens. “This is the ideal time for us to expand our presence in the Midwest, and Pullman is the ideal place for us to do so.”

The project will be Gotham Greens’ second greenhouse in Pullman. The company currently operates a 75,000-square-foot greenhouse on the roof of the nearby Method Products factory, which opened in 2015.

For more information, please visit www.gothamgreens.com.