FRANKLIN, N.H. — General Properties has broken ground on Mercantile Place, a three-building flex complex in Franklin. Located on the Pemigewasset River, the property will incorporate a mix of office and industrial tenants. The tenant roster will include FBG Tank Services, a branch of First Business Group; Sustainable Refining, a formulator of vehicle undercoating products; Poly Lining Systems Inc.; Online Motor Deals LLC and a vehicle service maintenance center. GP Property Management, a division of General Properties LLC, will manage the complex.
ORLANDO, FLA. — Tavistock Development Co. has partnered with McCraney Property Co. to co-develop 1.3 million square feet of industrial space at Infinity Park, Tavistock’s 206-acre, mixed-use development located along John Young Parkway in Orlando. The joint venture expects to break ground on the speculative light distribution and logistics buildings by the end of the year. Infinity Park currently houses a 113,000-square-foot office building and an adjacent 125,000-square-foot office building currently under construction. Orange Lake Resorts, which joined Infinity Park last year, will house its corporate campus at the buildings. Once complete by the end of the year, the two buildings will house nearly 2,100 employees. At full build-out, the park will feature industrial and hotel space, approximately 50,000 square feet of retail space and up to 500,000 square feet of office space available for build-to-suit and pre-lease opportunities. David Murphy and Monica Wonus of CBRE are handling the leasing assignment for the industrial portion of Infinity Park. John Pottinger and Scott Bell of Tavistock are handling leasing for the project’s retail, hospitality and office segments.
JESSUP, MD. — HFF has arranged a $56.3 million loan for the refinancing of Baltimore Washington Logistics Center, a two-building industrial complex in Jessup, located roughly halfway between Baltimore and Washington, D.C. Daniel McIntyre, Fred Wittmann and Greg LaBine of HFF arranged the loan through Citizens Bank on behalf of the borrower, a joint venture between AEW Capital Management LP and Manekin LLC. Building I at the complex is located at 7600 Assateague Drive and totals 853,503 square feet. The asset was vacant at the time of sale. Building II, located at 7540 Assateague Drive, is a 160,255-square-foot refrigerated warehouse/distribution building that is fully leased to G Cefaly & Bro, a seafood and produce food service distributor.
COVINGTON, GA. — Nisshinbo Automotive Manufacturing Inc. (NAMI), a manufacturer and supplier of brake pads, will invest $72 million to expand its facility in Covington, Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal announced on Tuesday, Sept. 4. The expansion will create 100 production and administration jobs at the facility, which is located roughly 35 miles southeast of Atlanta. NAMI, a subsidiary of Japan-based Nisshinbo Group, has maintained a presence in Covington for 20 years. The Covington facility produces friction materials for automotive manufacturers and develops environmentally friendly, copper-free brake pads. According to the governor’s office, Japanese-affiliated companies currently operate more than 500 facilities in Georgia, employing approximately 30,000 people.
VACAVILLE, CALIF. — Dermody Properties has purchased a 14-acre land parcel on Icon Way in Vacaville for an undisclosed price. The company plans to develop LogistiCenter at Vacaville on the site, with construction scheduled to begin in October and finish in June 2019. The facility will feature 252,160 square feet of Class A space for industrial and logistics tenants, featuring 36-foot clear heights, and extra trailer and car parking to accommodate e-commerce companies. LogistiCenter at Vacaville will be located midway between the San Francisco Bay area and the Sacramento markets, offering access to interstates 550 and 80. Jason Ovadia of JLL represented Dermody in the land transaction, which was facilitated by Tom Schaal of Schaal Realty Advisors. The name of the seller was not released.
PLANO, TEXAS — A partnership between Lincoln Rackhouse, the data center division of Lincoln Property Co., and Principal Real Estate Investors has acquired a 454,421-square-foot data center located at 1000 Coit Road in Plano, a northern suburb of Dallas. The seller was an undisclosed Fortune 500 financial institution. The property has 8 megawatts immediately available for lease with the capacity to expand to 16 megawatts. The facility was acquired as part of a 1 million square-foot portfolio of data centers that includes properties in Kansas City and Phoenix.
CARROLLTON, TEXAS — Product Innovations Research, a Texas-based consumer goods company, has signed a 98,257-square-foot industrial lease at 1103-1215 Trend Drive in Carrollton, a northern suburb of Dallas. According to LoopNet Inc., the property was built in 1979 and is tailored to distribution users. Josh Barnes, Andrew Gilbert and Ben Wallace of Holt Lunsford Commercial represented the landlord, Stonelake Capital, in the lease negotiations.
CICERO, ILL. — Bridge Development Partners has sold Bridge Point 290 Business Park in Cicero for an undisclosed price. Cabot Properties purchased the industrial development, a large portion of which is currently under construction. When completed, the development will total 899,278 square feet across three buildings. In March, Bridge delivered the 323,343-square-foot Building 1, which is fully leased to Royal Box Group. Buildings 2 and 3 are slated for completion in August 2019. Michael Caprile, Ryan Bain and Zach Graham of CBRE represented Bridge and its joint venture partner, Banner Oak Capital Partners LP, in the sale. Steve Connolly and Mark Moran of NAI Hiffman are marketing Buildings 2 and 3 for lease.
It has been a banner year thus far for the St. Louis industrial market with yet another milestone achieved. Mid-year absorption totaled 2.5 million square feet of space, a number more closely suited for the entire year versus the halfway point. Fueled by continued absorption, the market has more than 5 million square feet of space under construction with vacancy of approximately 4.9 percent. The continued success is no surprise. But economic incentives, often overlooked and underappreciated, are the unsung heroes behind each industrial development around town. Gaining knowledge Economic incentives have been a prerequisite in attracting or retaining businesses like Amazon, World Wide Technologies and Best Buy. But they do not just benefit large corporations; local and regional users are able to enjoy new Class A real estate in these developments as well. Why? Incentives help bridge the gap for the developer and the user to account for being in a low-rent, high-construction cost market, which is not a great recipe for new development. Yes, St. Louis boasts some of the lowest asking rents in the Midwest, currently averaging $4.70 per square foot for available industrial space. One would think that businesses would flock here because of the low …
HUMBLE, TEXAS — Forward Air Solutions, a division of Tennessee-based distribution and logistics firm Forward Air Corp., has signed a 289,200-square-foot industrial lease in metro Houston. The company will occupy freestanding distribution space at 18727 Kenswick Drive in Humble, a northern suburb of Houston. The property was built in 2015 and currently totals 132,000 square feet, but is in the process of being expanded. Robert McGee and Chase Cribbs of Lee & Associates represented the landlord, Adkisson Group Inc., in the lease negotiations. Mike Bauer of Fischer Co. represented Forward Air.