ALLENTOWN, PA. — NAI Summit has negotiated an 8,400-square-foot, long-term industrial lease at 1032-1036 N. Irving St. in Allentown. The property recently received more than $100,000 in capital improvements and now houses an office and a showroom in addition to warehouse space. Jay Haines of NAI Summit represented the tenant, JJC Flooring LLC, and the undisclosed landlord in the lease negotiations.
HARRISBURG, PA. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of a 4,495-square-foot retail property net leased to Panera Bread in Harrisburg. The store is located on an outparcel of High Point Commons, a 324,000-square-foot power center that houses retailers such as Orangetheory Fitness, Petco and Verizon Wireless. Jim Shiebler, James Garner and James Medefind of Marcus & Millichap represented the buyer, a private investor, in the transaction. Sean Beuche of Marcus & Millichap also assisted with the deal.
JENKINS TOWNSHIP, PA. — Ball Corp. plans to invest $360 million to acquire Interstate Distribution Center in Jenkins Township and retrofit the facility as an aluminum beverage packaging plant. The asset comprises nearly 1.1 million square feet and Ball will employ 230 employees at the plant when it begins production, which is slated for mid-2021. According to local newspaper Times Leader, the property is located at 140 Industrial Drive, between Interstates 81 and 476 and eight miles north of downtown Wilkes-Barre. Endurance Real Estate Group built the asset in 2019. The property features 40-foot clear heights, 108 loading docks, two drive-in doors, 421 car parking spaces and 129 trailer parking spaces. “Ball Corp. has a longstanding presence in the international marketplace, and Pennsylvania is pleased with the company’s commitment to expand its manufacturing facilities in the northeast,” says Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf. The project will generate more than $16 million in new employment payroll annually, according to the governor’s office. The state’s Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) offered up to $2 million in Redevelopment Assistance Capital Project (RACP) funding to be distributed upon the creation of the new jobs, as well as $400,000 in funding for workforce development …
ALLENTOWN, PA. — NAI Summit has brokered the sale of a 4,113-square-foot retail building located at 2071 SW 31st St. in Allentown. Sarah Finney-Miller of NAI Summit represented the seller, LEAD 112 LLC, in the transaction. The buyer, 3030 Lehigh Street, plans to renovate the property and convert it into an automotive service center.
By Tom Weitzel, managing director, JLL The Philadelphia office market at the moment is running in place, which is to say that there is certainly energy being expended, but it is going nowhere fast. Tenants and landlords alike are partnering with real estate experts to navigate this challenging time. However, while office users evaluate businesses and study workforces, the benefit of making a decision has not yet outweighed the downside of making a wrong decision, so most users are adopting a “wait-and-see” approach. Tenant Perspective Tenants are finding it challenging to make long-term decisions about their office spaces given the lack of clarity in the future. Business leaders and executives are tasked with considering factors such as health and safety, productivity, profitability and overall employee morale on a daily basis as they evaluate their physical office space usage during COVID-19. Throughout the region, executives continue to balance health and safety concerns with operational needs as they advance office re-entry plans. They are also assessing the current productivity of their employees compared to that at the beginning of the pandemic. Many companies that we have spoken with have cited declining productivity and creativity from their employees. At the same time, these …
SCRANTON, PA. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of The Oppenheim Building, a 193,000-square-foot historic office property in downtown Scranton. The property was built in 1888 and was 27 percent occupied at the time of sale. Craig Dunkle and Jackson Day of Marcus & Millichap handled the sale on behalf of the undisclosed seller through Ten-X auction platform. The buyer, a Pennsylvania-based developer, will convert the building into a Class A multifamily property.
By Marc Isdaner, senior managing director, principal, Colliers International; and Ian Richman, senior managing director, Colliers International Strong job and population growth in recent years have caused the Philadelphia/Southern New Jersey industrial market to continually rise on the radars of both investors and developers. As the nation battles COVID-19, we see demand for industrial space growing as more users look to service last-mile customers in densely populated areas. This market is no exception. With the right guidance and counseling, investors can achieve strong returns here, even as variables like user demand and land/construction costs continue to rise, bringing valuations and sales prices along with them. Projects Get Bigger We continue to see developers take down large tracts near major thoroughfares in this region, oftentimes building on speculative bases. Examples of such projects are Mansfield Logistics Park, a 960,000-square-foot, two-building spec development by Clarion Partners off Interstate 295 in Burlington County that is nearing completion; and The Cubes at East Greenwich, a two-building spec development located off I-295 in Gloucester County. The latter project is being developed in an area that was largely inactive until 2018, as land sites and established industrial parks such as Pureland were essential built out. Scout …
EASTON, PA. — NAI Summit has brokered the sale of a 180,000-square-foot industrial facility located at 3700 Glover Road in Easton, about 70 miles north of Philadelphia. According to LoopNet Inc., the property is situated on 15 acres and features 26-foot clear heights, 15 loading docks and parking for 242 cars and numerous trucks. Mike Adams of NAI Summit represented the buyer, personal care products manufacturer A.P. Deauville, which is relocating and expanding from New Jersey into this facility. The new owner-occupant is effectively doubling its footprint and expects to bring more than 100 new jobs to the region. The seller was not disclosed.
PHILADELPHIA — Designer Shoe Warehouse (DSW) has opened a 15,616-square-foot store at Fashion District Philadelphia, a shopping, dining and entertainment destination in the Center City neighborhood. DSW’s opening comes on the heels of the debuts of tenants such as Kate Spade Outlet and Industrious, as well as the re-openings of Candytopia and Wonderspaces. Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust (PREIT) owns Fashion District Philadelphia.
PITTSBURGH — Dick’s Sporting Goods (NYSE: DKS) recorded its highest quarterly earnings in company history for its fiscal second quarter, which ended on Aug. 1. The company reported $276.8 million in consolidated net income and boosted its earnings per share by 155 percent relative to the second quarter of 2019, rising from $1.26 per share in 2019 to $3.21 per share in 2020. The Pittsburgh-based retailer cited booming e-commerce sales, which rose by 194 percent year over year, as a key driver in the company’s growth. In addition, Dick’s noted that through the first three weeks of the third quarter, same-store sales have already increased by 11 percent compared to that period in 2019. Dick’s has also opened several new stores in recent weeks, including two in Massachusetts and one in New Jersey, as well as a combined Dick’s Sporting Goods and Golf Galaxy store in Georgia. The company’s stock price opened at $47.70 per share on Wednesday, Aug. 26, up from $32.62 per share a year ago.