During the first half of 2018, the Eastern Pennsylvania industrial market has been anything but quiet. Fueled by occupier demand and the institutional capital community’s perpetual appetite for industrial product, there has been unprecedented activity on the transactional front, which is up significantly year-over-year. From a pure volume perspective, the market is on a trajectory to make this the most active year on record. Unlike prior years where product starved capital markets would see less than a dozen quality trades in Pennsylvania, this year has proven to be more plentiful, with year-over-year sales volumes almost doubled for one-off offerings. Meanwhile, the mega transactions continue with pending portfolio and company sales like DCT to Prologis and GPT to Blackstone. Connected Markets While activity in specific submarkets ebbs and flows, the synergy between them is greater than ever before. In fact, the trend towards considering the Eastern Pennsylvania industrial market as a whole continues to gain traction. Whereas in the past, a tenant or investor may have been interested in evaluating a particular geographic region, today the various submarkets are providing equally viable options for those seeking to expand and new occupiers looking to open facilities. One exception to the rule is …
CAMBRIDGE, MASS. — The Stubblebine Company/CORFAC International has brokered the $79 million sale of a 192,459 mixed-use portfolio on 11.9 acres. The property is located in the Cambridge Quad, a life science and residential campus. The portfolio consists of three properties located at 127 Smith Place, 13 Mooney St. and 45-67 Mooney St. David and James Stubblebine of Stubblebine/CORFAC represented the buyer, Cabot, Cabot & Forbes, in the transaction. The seller was undisclosed. The Cambridge Quad is near Alewife Station, the anchor of the MBTA’s Red Line, which connects West Cambridge, Harvard Square, Kendall Square and the Seaport.
SOUTH BRUNSWICK, N.J. — CBRE has arranged a $19.5 million refinancing for a soon to be completed 305,598-square-foot industrial facility in South Brunswick. Located at 2270 Route 130, the property has been leased to regional last-mile delivery company Lasership. James Gunning, Donna Falzarano and Kyle Saviano of CBRE arranged the loan on behalf of borrower, 2270 Route 130 LLC. The lender was undisclosed. The building features 40-foot clear heights, 46 dock doors and 68 trailer parking spaces.
SOUTH BRUNSWICK, N.J. — Lee & Associates New Jersey has secured a 526,400-square-foot industrial lease for XPO Logistics in South Brunswick. Lee & Associates represented XPO Logistics in securing a long term lease with owner Prologis. The property is located at 115 Interstate Boulevard and previously served as the Tory Burch Distribution Center.
CARLSTADT, N.J. — Terreno Realty Corp. has acquired a 24,000-square-foot industrial property in Carlstadt for $3.5 million. Located at 130 Commerce Road, the property is less than two miles north of the Meadowlands Sports Complex and features four dock-high loading positions as well as parking for 20 cars. The property is currently fully leased to one tenant, Metrovision Production Group. The seller was undisclosed.
ROMEOVILLE, ILL. — RJW Transport has signed a 416,504-square-foot industrial lease at 50 Southcreek Parkway in Romeoville. This is the third major lease for RJW this year for a combined total of 1.2 million square feet. The trucking and logistics company previously signed leases in Woodridge and Bolingbrook. Dominic Carbonari of JLL represented RJW in its latest lease. The landlord was not disclosed.
HOUSTON — A partnership between Cushman & Wakefield and JLL has arranged the sale of a 797-unit self-storage facility located at 5321 Richmond Ave. in the Galleria-Uptown area of Houston. The property was sold in conjunction with an 849-unit facility in Los Angeles. The two properties feature more than 158,000 square feet. Greg Wells of Cushman & Wakefield and Steve Mellon of JLL represented the seller, California-based Cardiff Mason Development, in the transaction. The buyer was an undisclosed, national owner/operator.
SEATTLE — Westcore Properties has completed the sale of a single-tenant industrial building in Seattle’s Georgetown submarket. Talon Private Capital acquired the property for $14.5 million, or $193.21 per square foot. OpenSquare, a provider of office space workstations and furniture for corporate users, fully occupies the 75,048-square-foot property, which is located at 303 S. River St. Andy Miller of Kidder Mathews, along with Mike Roy and Kevin Skillestad of Neil Walter Co., represented the seller in the deal.
CITY OF INDUSTRY, CALIF. — DAUM Commercial Real Estate Services has arranged the sale of an industrial facility located at 13260-13280 E. Amar Road in City of Industry, a suburb 22 miles from downtown Los Angeles. Oak Brook, Ill.-based CenterPoint Properties acquired the 93,818-square-foot property for an undisclosed price. Situated on a 6.2-acre site, the building features 24 dock-high loading doors, more than 5,000 square feet of office space, 22-foot clear heights, 56 additional trailer stalls with more than 100-trailer storage capability and three drive-in bays, as well as Union Pacific rail service. CenterPoint plans to invest $2.5 million in renovations to upgrade the asset, which was built in the 1960s. Renovations will include creating a best-in-class, secure, lit and paved yard, updating the façade and modernizing the building systems. Rudy Lara and Nathan Lara of DAUM’s Inland Empire office represented the buyer in the off-market transaction.
JACKSONVILLE, FLA. — Savlan Capital has purchased Exchange South, a multi-tenant flex business property on Philips Highway in Jacksonville’s Southside. An undisclosed seller sold the property for $18.3 million, or $94 per square foot. Built from 1990 through 1996, the 194,400-square-foot building features 16 dock-high doors and 35 drive-in doors. At the time of acquisition, the property was 75 percent leased to 25 tenants, including Omnicare, Univar, ALS Group, Orion Energy Systems, Schindler Elevators, Konica Minolta, Lab Corp. and LendingTree. Savlan Capital plans to invest $2 million in upgrades to the property to improve the interiors of vacant units, exterior repainting and upgraded landscaping and curb appeal. Keith Goldfaden and Christian Harden of NAI Hallmark were retained to lead the leasing initiative for the property.