FREMONT, MILPITAS AND SAN JOSE, CALIF. — Boston-based International Real Estate Corp. has acquired an 800,000-square-foot industrial portfolio, which spans Fremont, Milpitas and San Jose. Milpitas Industrial Properties Inc. sold the portfolio for $68 million or approximately $85 per square foot. The center is currently 94 percent occupied by tenants, including Kraft Foods, Flextronics Inc. and Loomis Fargo & Co. Joe Moriarty, Bob Gilley and Steve Hermann of CB Richard Ellis brokered the transaction.
GRIFFIN, GA. — Milner, Ga.-based Ranew’s Cos. has broken ground on a 60,000-square-foot warehouse on Boyd’s Crossing Road in Griffin. The property will serve as a painting facility for Caterpillar, which is located across the street at Green Valley Industrial Park. The $5 million Ranew’s property is expected to create 50 new jobs. Delivery is set for the third quarter of next year.
NAPERVILLE AND WARRENVILLE, ILL. — Charles Canale and Brian Kling of Colliers Bennett & Kahnweiler have represented Burgess Enterprises in the acquisition of two parcels of land located along the south side of Ferry Road in Naperville and Warrenville. The Naperville property consists of a 38-acre parcel, which was sold by Hartz Construction; the adjacent Warrenville property consists of a 7-acre parcel, which was sold by Paul Swanson & Associates. Hartz Construction was represented in-house, while Paul Swanson & Associates was represented by Joseph Dvorak of Colliers Bennett & Kahnweiler in the transaction. Burgess Enterprises has purchased the properties to construct the master-planned High Point of Naperville industrial park. The LEED-certified project, which will break ground in the spring, will consist mostly of speculative office, warehouse and commercial condo components. The acquisition prices for the properties were not disclosed.
HOUSTON — The Woodlands, Texas-based Biofuels Power Corp. has agreed to purchase the decommissioned H.O. Clarke Electric Generating Station, located at the intersection of Main Street and Hiram Clarke Road in Houston. The acquisition will include the 79-acre site, as well as all of the remaining infrastructure and equipment, which includes 65,000 barrels of aboveground storage tanks and a high-pressure natural gas pipeline that is connected to the distribution system. The power station, which was constructed in the 1940s, was decommissioned in 2004. At the time, the station’s gas-fired turbines were also removed. Biofuels Power Corp. plans to redevelop the site into a clean energy industrial park that will provide power to tenants by way of biofuels, biomass, natural gas, biogas and solar energy. The deal is expected to close by the end of the year. The construction timetable for the redevelopment was not disclosed.
DAVENPORT, FLA. — Addison, Texas-based Mattress Giant has leased 83,864 square feet of space in the 396,740-square-foot Park 27 Distribution Center II from an undisclosed party for $5.4 million. Mattress Giant has made Park 27, located on Deen Still Rd. in Davenport, the distribution center for its 123 retail stories throughout Florida. The building, located in the 1.2 million-square-foot Park 27 Distribution Center, is 92 percent leased. York Property Co.’s Jeff York and Dallas-based Jackson & Cooksey’s Reggie Beavan represented Mattress Giant. Kyle Armentrout of Duke Realty represented the landlord.
PLYMOUTH, MICH. — Brembo North America has signed a 12-year lease for 45,000 square feet of space within Plymouth-based DeMattia Group’s MetroWest Technology Park located in Plymouth. The building will serve as Brembo North America’s new headquarters, as well as a research and development facility for the company. It will consolidate three corporate and technical offices into one location. The facility will feature product development, laboratory space, offices and team collaboration areas. DeMattia will act as the designer/builder for the project. Additional tenants within the park include Johnson Controls, AVL North America, Freudenberg-NOK, DOW Corning and Metaldyne. Brembo is expected to take occupancy this summer.
CICERO, ILL. — Meridian Design Build has been selected to coordinate the renovation of C.R. Laurence’s recently acquired 90,000-square-foot manufacturing facility located at 5501 W. Ogden Ave. in Cicero. In order to improve the overall flow within in the facility, an extensive amount of interior demolition work and reconfiguration is planned. The renovations will make room for updated employee facilities, including plant restrooms/locker rooms, lunchrooms and plant offices. Additionally, electrical service will be upgraded to meet current code requirements. The project is being completed on a design/build basis, with Itasca, Ill.-based Heitman Architects serving as the designer. Ryan Brandush and Tom McNett of Meridian Design Build are serving as project engineer and senior superintendent, respectively, at the site. The estimated cost of completion was not disclosed.
STOCKTON, CALIF. — Sears Holdings Corp. has opened its Stockton Direct Delivery Center, a 780,000-square-foot industrial center in Stockton. The company, which was formed when Sears and Kmart merged, is leasing the built-to-suit property from ProLogis. The property features 120 dock doors, 410 trailer spaces and more than 3,400 floor locations. Sears Holdings plans to utilize the facility to distribute home appliances, tractors, televisions and other large items to more than 104 Sears, Orchard Supply and Kmart stores in California, Nevada, Oregon and Utah. The center is expected to receive LEED Silver certification in spring 2009.
BOLINGBROOK, ILL. — Goya Foods has taken occupancy at its recently completed 150,000-square-foot Midwest distribution center located at 1401 Remington Blvd. in Bolingbrook. Transwestern provided project management services for the $17.5 million project, which was developed by Northern Builders. The project was completed in 6 months. Situated on a 15-acre site, the facility includes 40-foot clear ceiling heights, a high storage freezer, cooler storage, a production room and a training room. Transwestern’s Robert Klinger led the project management team on behalf of Goya Foods.
INLAND EMPIRE, CALIF. — Voit Commercial Brokerage has closed two industrial transactions totaling $6.7 million in the Inland Empire. In the first transaction, LIA Properties LLC has acquired a 28,125-square-foot industrial building for $3.6 million. Shengqu and Xiaoling Chen sold the property, which is located at 13810 Mountain Ave. in Chino, Calif. Joe Miller of Voit’s Anaheim, Calif., office represented the buyer; David Kotai of Lin-Kotai Commercial represented the seller. In the second transaction, Kathy M. Gardarian Family Trust has purchased a 31,768-square-foot industrial building, which is located at 1120 Citrus St. in Riverside, Calif., for $3.1 million. Todd Hergesell of Voit’s Irvine office represented the buyer; Milo Lipson of Grubb & Ellis represented the seller, Oakmont Riverside Hunter Park LLC, in the transaction.