In Southern Maine, we have an inventory problem. An inventory shortage, that is. During the recovery, there has been a steady flight to quality in all sectors including office, retail and, most strikingly, the industrial market. For the seventh consecutive year, the Greater Portland industrial market vacancy rate has dropped. We are now hovering close to a 2 percent total vacancy, which is grossly inhibiting end-users and growth. Throughout 2017, we worked with buyers and tenants that struggle to find suitable relocation and growth opportunities. Multiple offers and off-market sales have become commonplace, which frustrates end-users. We are coaching our clients to remain patient, flexible and communicative in this fluid and competitive market. Accordingly, the limited inventory drastically increased both lease rates and sales pricing for industrial style space. Sale price trends, in particular, deserve a closer look. In 2011, at the tail end of the recession, Class A and B industrial buildings were selling in the $40-per-square-foot range. Sales were almost exclusively going to owner-user businesses who were bullish enough to bet the economy would turn. Today, those businesses are competing with a smaller inventory pool, and against investors looking to diversify their portfolios. Quality industrial buildings are now …
DUPONT, WASH. — CRG has acquired DuPont Corporate Center, a 1.6 million-square-foot regional logistics hub formerly occupied by Intel in DuPont, for an undisclosed sum. The campus is located at 2800 Center Drive. DuPont Corporate Center includes a 340,000-square-foot facility that will undergo extensive capital improvements. Phase I of the development is designed to include a 750,200-square-foot distribution facility. Construction is expected to begin this summer. Phase II will include a 494,900-square-foot distribution facility. The center is situated near the Port of Tacoma, between Seattle and Portland, Ore. CBRE represented the seller in this transaction and will head up CRG’s leasing efforts for the existing building. Wilma Warshak of Washington Real Estate Advisors will market the facilities under development.
WILMER, TEXAS — Bob Moore Construction has completed Interpoint Distribution Center, a 350,000-square-foot industrial facility located at 3800 N. Interstate 45 in Wilmer, roughly 15 miles southwest of Dallas. The developer, Houston-based Skyhawk Partners, purchased the site along with J.A. Billip Co. Other members of the project team include leasing agent Colliers International and architect Alliance Architects. The facility is situated near the Union Pacific Intermodal and near facilities leased to FedEx, Procter & Gamble, Amazon and Shippers Warehouse.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA — An affiliate of Blackstone (NYSE: BX) has entered into an agreement to acquire Vancouver-based Pure Industrial Real Estate Trust (PIRET) (TSX: AAR-UN) for $8.10 per trust unit — $3.8 billion — in an all-cash transaction. The transaction price represents a 21 percent premium to the closing price of PIRET units on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Jan. 8. Blackstone will complete the acquisition through its real estate investment arm, Blackstone Property Partners. “The trust has accomplished tremendous growth in the 10 years since the initial public offering in August 2007,” says Rick Turner, chairman of PIRET’s Board of Trustees. “Since inception, we have generated a total return in excess of 345 percent and we have built a platform that has made us a leader in the Canadian industrial REIT space.” The transaction is structured as a statutory plan of arrangement under the British Columbia Business Corporations Act. Completion of the transaction, which is expected to occur in the second quarter of this year, is subject to customary conditions. PIRET will continue to pay its normal monthly distributions through closing of the transaction. BMO Capital Markets is acting as financial advisor to PIRET, while Greenhill & Co. Goodmans …
LOS ANGELES — Rexford Industrial Realty has acquired a four-property industrial portfolio in Southern California for $62.7 million. The portfolio contains a total of 416,843 square feet. The assets are fully leased with below-market, in-place leases rolling over in the next 20 months. The transaction includes 302 S. Rockefeller Ave. and 4355 E. Brickell St. in Ontario, along with 12622-32 Monarch St. in Garden Grove and Hanan Way in the Pico Rivera submarket of Central Los Angeles. Rexford also sold 77-700 Enfield Lane in Palm Desert for $2.4 million.
NORTHERN NEW JERSEY — NKF Capital Markets has arranged the sale of an industrial portfolio of four assets located throughout Northern New Jersey. Tulfra Real Estate sold its 100 percent interest in the properties, which total 254,000 square feet, for an undisclosed price. The single-tenant properties, ranging in size from 38,000 square feet to 141,000 square feet, are occupied by a diverse tenant roster for a wide range of uses, including plastics manufacturing and assembly, light industrial, storage, office and private label supplement development. Kevin Welsh, Brian Schulz and Jason Emrani of NKF represented the seller and procured the buyer, a private high-net worth investor based in Airmont, N.Y. Additionally, Jordan Roeschlaub, Dustin Stolly, Dan Fromm and Robert Tonnessen of NKF Capital Markets Debt & Structured Finance team secured acquisition financing for the purchase.
PLAINFIELD, CONN. — Western Express, a truckload carrier, has purchased a 12.8-acre facility at 1293 Norwich Road in Plainfield. P. Camp LLC of Jewett City, Conn., sold the property for $1.7 million. The property comprises two adjacent parcels and a 30,740-square-foot building. This is will be ninth location for the Nashville, Tenn.-based truckload carrier. Ron Lyman of Lyman Real Estate Brokerage & Development represented the seller and buyer in the deal.
PORTLAND, TENN. — Equus Capital Partners Ltd. has acquired a four-building, 1.3 million-square-foot industrial portfolio in Portland, a city roughly 40 miles north of Nashville, for an undisclosed price. The acquisition was made on behalf of Equus Investment Partnership X LP, a $361 million discretionary equity fund managed by Equus. The portfolio includes three Class A assets located at 1115 and 1125 Vaughn Drive and 1042 Fred White Blvd., all constructed between 2002 and 2007. The properties feature 32-foot clear heights, ESFR sprinkler systems, ample loading, 125- to 175-foot truck courts and efficient column spacing. The two larger buildings include cross-dock configurations. In addition, the portfolio includes one Class B building located at 104 Challenger Drive. Constructed in 1996, the building was renovated in 2007 to include T-5 lighting and an ESFR sprinkler system. Cushman & Wakefield arranged the sale of the portfolio, which was approximately 90 percent leased at the time of sale.
MINNEAPOLIS — PCCP and Capital Partners LLP have formed a joint venture to acquire a 1.2 million-square-foot industrial portfolio in metro Minneapolis. The purchase price was not disclosed. Artis, a Canada-based REIT, sold the seven-property portfolio, which is 82 percent leased. The assets feature a mix of bulk warehouse, light industrial and flex product types. The properties include France Avenue Business Park (Brooklyn Center), Northpoint Industrial Center (Fridley), Eagan Industrial Warehouse (Eagan), Corporate Square (Eagan), Braemar Business Center (Bloomington), Burnsville Business Center (Burnsville) and Round Lake Business Center (Arden Hills).
HOUSTON — McCarthy Building Cos. Inc. has been awarded the contract to build the Southwest Airlines Tech Ops MX Hangar project at William P. Hobby Airport in Houston. The two-bay hangar maintenance facility will be able to house up to six 737 aircraft and will include paved aircraft parking areas, aircraft wash facilities, taxiway connections, parking and loading docks. The construction includes demolition of existing facilities and utility relocation. Totaling 240,000 square feet, the hangar will also feature offices, parts storage and other support areas. McCarthy Building’s previous projects for Southwest Airlines include its new office building and Leadership Education and Aircrew Development center in Dallas. The contractor’s other aviation work includes projects at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.