Amazon.com Inc. has agreed to take space in a first-of-its-kind three-story warehouse, a new type of distribution center that could reduce delivery times in congested cities to hours rather than days. While common in densely-populated Asian and European cities, modern warehouses with multiple floors have been absent until recently in the U.S., where higher land and construction costs deterred developers. But now that more retailers are racing to deliver more same-day packages, developers are starting to build the multistory fulfillment centers needed to speed delivery in congested cities.

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Amazon.com Inc. has agreed to take space in a first-of-its-kind three-story warehouse, a new type of distribution center that could reduce delivery times in congested cities to hours rather than days. While common in densely-populated Asian and European cities, modern warehouses with multiple floors have been absent until recently in the U.S., where higher land and construction costs deterred developers. But now that more retailers are racing to deliver more same-day packages, developers are starting to build the multistory fulfillment centers needed to speed delivery in congested cities.

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Amazon recently signed a lease for a three-story warehouse in Seattle. The warehouse is the first of its kind to open in the U.S. with multiple floors that large delivery trucks can access by ramps, property analysts say.

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Amazon, Target Corp. , Walmart Inc. and other big retailers are looking to slash delivery times from two days to as short as two hours in some instances. To do so in dense urban centers, having distribution facilities close to the customers, rather than in more distant suburban locations, is critical.

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