SHELBYVILLE, IND. — Greenleaf Foods SPC has selected Shelbyville as the location for a new plant-based protein foods production facility. The company says it will invest $310 million in the new plant and create as many as 460 jobs by the end of 2022. The 230,000-square-foot facility will double Greenleaf’s production capacity. Greenleaf has not yet selected a general contractor for the build-to-suit project. Incentives from the city and Shelby County totaled $2.5 million. The state offered up to $5 million in conditional tax credits and as much as $1 million in training grants based on job creation plans. The state also offered up to $1.25 million from the Industrial Development Grant Fund. Greenleaf makes foods under the Lightlife Foods and Field Roast Grain Meat Co. brands. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Toronto-based Maple Leaf Foods Inc. Established in 2018, Greenleaf is headquartered in Chicago and currently operates facilities in Seattle and Turner Falls, Mass.
Indiana
PLYMOUTH, IND. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of Discount Storage in Plymouth for $3.4 million. The 373-unit, 45,400-square-foot self-storage property is located at 16220 Lincoln Highway. Constructed in 2016, the facility features 272 non-climate-controlled units, 88 climate-controlled units, surveillance cameras and outside parking. Sean Delaney of Marcus & Millichap represented the buyer and seller. Josh Caruana assisted on the transaction as the broker of record in Indiana.
JEFFERSONVILLE, IND. — Denso Products and Services Americas Inc. has signed a 311,483-square-foot industrial lease at River Ridge Commerce Center in Jeffersonville. The Opus Group developed the 426,450-square-foot building, which features a clear height of 32 feet and 44 dock positions. Denso is an automotive parts manufacturer. Kevin Groves of CBRE represented Opus in the lease transaction.
PLAINFIELD, IND. — A joint venture between Distribution Realty Group LLC and a private real estate fund advised by Crow Holdings Capital have unveiled plans to develop a 338,520-square-foot speculative industrial building in Plainfield. The property will be located at 9500 Bradford Road and known as Plainfield Distribution Center. The building will feature a clear height of 32 feet, LED lighting, up to 74 dock doors and 67 trailer stalls. Brian Buschuk and Steve Schwegman of JLL will market the property for lease. Arco Murray will serve as general contractor.
INDIANAPOLIS — FM Capital has provided a $6 million bridge loan for the acquisition of a retail center in Indianapolis. The 182,056-square-foot property is comprised of two buildings and an outparcel. The asset is approximately 89 percent occupied. Tenants include Shoppers World, Dollar Tree and Dollar General. The borrower was not disclosed.
INDIANAPOLIS — A&G Realty Partners has arranged the sale of a 58,692-square-foot educational building in Indianapolis for $1.8 million. The facility was formerly an ITT Tech school owned and operated by now-bankrupt ITT Educational Services. Mercy Road Church has purchased the property with plans to operate the first floor as a church and lease the second floor to a coworking space for nonprofits and faith-based businesses. The sale marks the completion of A&G’s national disposition of 31 properties formerly owned by ITT Educational Services for a total of $88 million.
WEST LAFAYETTE, IND. — Money360 has provided a $7 million bridge loan for the refinancing of a 446,222-square-foot office property in West Lafayette. The three-year, nonrecourse loan features a loan-to-value ratio of 66.8 percent and a floating rate. The borrower was not disclosed.
Recently, my national research colleagues released “The Top 10 Commercial Real Estate Trends for 2019,” a piece featuring predictions on subjects such as trade tensions, labor shortages and the evolution of “co-everything.” Of all the predictions, one stood out as being especially relevant for the Indianapolis industrial market as we inch further into 2019. Indianapolis has lacked industrial space for occupiers seeking to grow, particularly in smaller segments. The great news is that the market is well on its way to remedying this ailment. Demand causing shortage As we all know, the industrial sector is undergoing an e-commerce revolution. This has created a rush of demand by retailers and third-party logistics (3PL) providers for distribution and warehouse space, especially in cities like Indianapolis, which historically has been recognized for logistics strength. As a result, industrial market fundamentals have generally tightened across much of the United States. In the fourth quarter of 2018, the U.S. industrial vacancy rate fell to 4.8 percent, the lowest rate on record. Similarly, Midwestern markets currently sitting at 4.8 percent vacancy have experienced a 50-basis point decline in vacancy since the fourth quarter of 2017. Pair that with north of 111.5 million square feet of …
ILLINOIS, IOWA AND MICHIGAN — Real estate advisory and brokerage firm A&G Realty Partners has announced the results of its Jan. 28 bankruptcy auction of the final department store properties formerly owned by The Bon-Ton Stores Inc. The stores, located in the Midwest, formerly operated under the Bergner’s Carson’s, Younkers, Elder-Beerman and Bon-Ton names. In Coralville, Iowa, a home furnishings retailer acquired the 98,458-square-foot Younkers at Coral Ridge Mall. Mall owner Abbell Associates purchased the 165,000-square-foot Younkers at Merle Hay Mall in Des Moines. Mall owner Brookfield Properties acquired the 128,000-square-foot Carson’s at Spring Hill Mall in Dundee Township, Ill., as well as the 150,081-square-foot Younkers in Grandville, Mich. Mall owner Simon Property Group purchased the 125,000-square-foot Bergner’s at White Oaks Mall in Springfield, Ill. In Indiana, the Economic Development Corp. of Wayne County purchased 100,000-square-foot Elder-Beerman in Richmond. HOM Furniture acquired the 46,660-square-foot Bon-Ton at Lewistown Mall in Lewistown, Pa. Two Herberger’s stores in Minnesota were removed from the auction. In late January and early March, A&G completed private sales on two other store properties from the Bon-Ton portfolio. This includes the sale of the former Younkers building at Miller Hill Mall in Duluth, Minn. Buyer Essentia Health plans …
While Indiana is well known for the Indianapolis 500, the state’s economy is firing on all cylinders and experiencing noteworthy job growth. Indiana’s marketing campaign, “A State That Works,” has been successful in attracting investment to the state by touting its highly ranked business climate, competitive cost of doing business, pro-business tax climate, low cost of living, extensive logistical infrastructure and access to strong educational systems. In June 2018, Bloomberg ranked the Indiana cities of Elkhart (No. 1), Kokomo (No. 3) and Columbus (No. 13) for having the largest employment gains in the country since the recession. The Indianapolis metro area has created one of the nation’s top burgeoning tech scenes with a 68.1 percent increase in tech job growth from 2006 to 2016, landing No. 5 on Forbes’ list of “Cities Creating the Most Technology Jobs.” The state’s stable economy and encouraging unemployment rate have provided strength to the rapidly evolving retail industry. While national news is filled with retail bankruptcies and store closures, there has been tremendous retail activity backfilling vacancies and spurring new development from the following retail sectors: grocery, home living, health and wellness, beauty, fitness, off-price/discount, and dining and entertainment. Backfilling bankruptcies Following the bankruptcy …