169 AC Manhattan Industrial Package

** New Listing **

Property Overview

±169-Acre Industrial Development Assemblage — Manhattan Township, Will County

A rare ±169-acre, four-parcel assemblage on the south edge of Manhattan, Illinois, fronting W Pauling Rd and S Kankakee St directly across from the Lincoln Generating Facility and an adjacent ComEd substation. The site combines high-quality, income-producing farmland with a location profile that aligns with the Village of Manhattan's stated priority for new industrial development near existing power-generation infrastructure.

Property Highlights

• ±169 acres (167.41 ac per PLSS/FSA) across four contiguous parcels under three ownerships, offered as a single development assemblage
• Nearly all tillable — weighted Productivity Index of 122.6 on Elliott and Ashkum silt loam soils (approximately 80% of the site)
• Directly adjacent (west, across S Kankakee St) to a ComEd substation and the ~656-MW Lincoln Generating Facility — a major existing power-generation asset on the PJM grid
• Frontage on W Pauling Rd, one of the three corridors the Village identifies as Manhattan's existing industrial areas
• Approximately 1,320 ft of frontage on S Kankakee St and an estimated 1,320–2,640 ft on W Pauling Rd
• Outside the 500-year floodplain — 100% FEMA Zone X (minimal flood hazard)
• Nearly level to gently undulating topography (26 ft total relief across the site)
• Currently zoned A-1 Agricultural (unincorporated Will County); annexation and rezoning to a Village industrial classification would be required for development
• Approximately 3 miles southeast of downtown Manhattan and the Manhattan Metra station (SouthWest Service)
• Approximately 12 miles northwest of Joliet and 37 miles south of downtown Chicago

Land Characteristics

The assemblage is composed almost entirely of productive cropland. The dominant soils are Elliott silt loam, 2–4% slopes (57.1% of the site) and Ashkum silty clay loam, 0–2% slopes (22.7%), with smaller components of Varna silt loam and Peotone silty clay loam. The site carries a weighted crop productivity index of 122.6 (Illinois Soils EFOTG, Bulletin 811). Topography is nearly level to gently undulating, ranging from approximately 693 to 719 feet of elevation with about 26 feet of total relief. A natural drainageway crosses the central portion of the assemblage, and the National Wetlands Inventory maps approximately 7.04 acres of freshwater emergent wetland within the boundary. The entire site lies within FEMA Zone X (an area of minimal flood hazard, outside the 500-year floodplain). The included Surety soil, topography, wetland, and FEMA maps detail these features.

Location, Access, and Infrastructure

The assemblage occupies the south-central and southwest portions of Section 26, Township 34 North, Range 11 East, bounded by S Kankakee St on the west and W Pauling Rd on the south, immediately southeast of the Village of Manhattan. Its defining feature is power: the property sits directly across S Kankakee St from a ComEd substation and the Lincoln Generating Facility, a natural-gas generating station with approximately 656 MW of capacity serving the PJM market. Proximity to existing substation and generation capacity is among the most significant factors in siting energy-intensive industrial and data-center uses across the Chicago–Will County market.

Regional highway access is via U.S. Route 52 through Manhattan (approximately 3 miles northwest); Interstate 80 via Joliet and New Lenox (approximately 12 miles northwest); and Interstate 57 via the Peotone interchange (approximately 9 miles southeast). The Manhattan Metra station (SouthWest Service) is approximately 3 miles northwest, and Norfolk Southern operates freight rail through Manhattan. The CenterPoint Intermodal Center near Joliet/Elwood — one of the largest inland ports in North America — is approximately 9 miles west.

Electric service and a ComEd substation are immediately adjacent; natural gas is in the area. Municipal water and sanitary sewer are not currently extended to the site and would require coordination with the Village of Manhattan as part of any annexation and development.

The site is currently unincorporated and farmed under Will County A-1 Agricultural zoning. The Village of Manhattan's 2025 Comprehensive Plan identifies industrial as a future land use to be "prioritized near existing industrial land uses such as the Lincoln Generating facility," names W Pauling Rd among the Village's existing industrial corridors, and designates the Village's Southern Growth Area for a mix of uses that includes industrial development. Development would require annexation to the Village and rezoning to an industrial classification; this listing presents an opportunity, not an entitlement. Prospective buyers should confirm all zoning, annexation, utility, and entitlement matters directly with the Village of Manhattan and Will County.

Schools

The property is served by Manhattan School District 114 (grades K–8) and Lincoln-Way Community High School District 210; Manhattan students attend Lincoln-Way West High School in New Lenox.

Positioning

Large, contiguous, nearly level parcels with existing on-site power infrastructure next door are increasingly scarce in the Chicago metropolitan industrial market, where substation and generation capacity have become primary site-selection constraints. This ±169-acre assemblage pairs that infrastructure adjacency with productive farmland that generates income during the entitlement and holding period — positioned in a community that has explicitly identified this corridor for future industrial growth.

Property Notes

Additional Resources

• Village of Manhattan — official website
• Will County Land Use Department (zoning & annexation)
• Manhattan School District 114
• Lincoln-Way Community High School District 210
• Manhattan, IL demographics (Census Reporter) 
• Village of Manhattan 2025 Comprehensive Plan (PDF) 
• Village of Manhattan Official Zoning Map (PDF) 

Property Map

Listing Details

MARK GOODWIN PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY

It is difficult to find a real estate professional that specializes in Illinois Land Brokerage. Our services area includes Kendall County, Grundy County, Kane County, LaSalle County, Kankakee County, Livingston County, Ford County,Bureau, Henry County, Kane County, Dekalb County, Lake County, Iroquois County, Vermilion County, Kankakee County, and Cook County. Illinois Land Brokerage is a very specialized segment of the real estate brokerage industry. Knowledgeable Land Brokers are difficult to find. Many agents can sell a farm, but how many have the experience and qualifications of Goodwin and Associates?

Mark Goodwin is a Illinois Land Broker who can advise you about your land asset. It takes an experienced Illinois Land Broker to understand how best to market your land asset or find the property that best fits the investors needs or desires. Goodwin and Associates is the Land Broker for you in Illinois. We can help you with the marketing of your farm, residential development land, industrial land and commercial land or help with the selection of farmland, commercial land, retail land, industrial land, residential development land, residential lots, industrial lots and commercial lots. We are here to help you reach your goals.