Retail fixture manufacturer Morgan Li has broken ground on a new manufacturing and warehouse center in Chicago Heights on the site where a devastating fire took place in February 2023.
The 240,000-square-foot building at 1001 Washington Ave. is due to be finished by next spring and will consolidate Morgan Li’s manufacturing and warehousing under one roof.
The energy-efficient facility will feature more than 20 loading docks and a separate 40,000-square-foot painting building designed to handle finished products, according to the company.
Founded in 1943, the company’s customers include retailers Adidas, Banana Republic, Gap, Old Navy and Walmart.
Andy Rosenband is chief executive officer and his brother, Jonathan, is president. They took over operation of the company in 2009 and the company was founded by their grandfather, Maurice Rosenband.
“This facility is more than just a building. It represents Morgan Li’s dedication to growth, innovation, and our deeply rooted ties to Chicago Heights,” Jonathan Rosenband said in a news release announcing the recent groundbreaking, “The decision to rebuild on the same site rather than relocate, and our list of local partners helping to make this project a reality, reflects the company’s commitment to the community.”
The company is headquartered at 383 E. 16th St., approximately a quarter-mile from the plant that burned, at 1001 Washington Ave.
At the time of the fire, the company said seven of the 67 warehouse employees at the Washington Avenue location were there to begin the morning shift. The fire broke out before 6 a.m. Feb. 6, 2023.
Multiple fire departments responded and the extra alarm blaze engulfed the Morgan Li warehouse, which stored furniture, according to the statement.
Along with retail fixtures such as shelving, the company makes hotel furniture.
Morgan Li also has production and warehouse facilities in Matteson and South Holland, and was able to expand its space on Cicero Avenue in Matteson to handle production after the fire, the company said. It has about 240 employees.
The company bought the Chicago Heights warehouse location during early 2022 after leasing space there for many years.
According to the company, Maurice Rosenbland started Par Steel Products & Adjustable Shelving in Chicago Heights in 1943.
The company’s initial products included self-service shoe and drug store shelving.
In 1987, Phil Rosenband, Maurice’s son, took over the company and launched Morgan Marshall, and shifted to producing warehouse shelving, according to the website, providing products to Walmart, Old Navy and Lowe’s.
