PEPPERELL, Mass. – The town of Pepperell has approval for what developers are calling the largest industrial development in the small town’s history.

The Industrial Logistics Park will be built on about 50 acres of land in the town’s industrial zone near the border with Hollis, New Hampshire, next to Skydive Pepperell.

Chicago-based Cervenka Development Partners is set to build two facilities totaling a combined 400,000-square-feet.

Town Administrator Andrew MacLean said the result of the new industrial development will result in a significant increase in Pepperell’s tax base.

“We have broad estimates that it will be above a half-a-million-dollar increase," MacLean said. "So, approaching two percent broadening of our tax base. Think about a small town like this. We have about a $34 million budget. Adding a half a million dollars to it would be like adding 80 or 90 houses.”

The town administrator said residents brought up legitimate concerns about having a new large industrial site in Pepperell, and the project now has 32 conditions from the planning board to meet the town’s needs.

MacLean said this kind of project, and similar ones in other small towns, need to be the right fit for the community they're moving into.

“I think it's evolutionary, right? If a project comes in that you definitely don't want, it doesn't mean you're anti-business or anti-development. It just means you were against that project. That was our experience here," MacLean said. "We have another industrial park in town, large employers for us. I think the town is open to that, but they're also very cognizant of it needs to be right for Pepperell.”

MacLean said the town is expecting site work to start sometime this spring. They’re expecting the build to take about 18 months.