FREEPORT, TEXAS — Volkswagen Group of America will open a $114 million importation facility in Freeport, located south of Houston on the Texas coastline. The site spans 120 acres and represents a consolidation of the German automaker’s port operations in Houston and Midlothian. Volkswagen has entered into a 20-year ground lease with a partnership between the two developers leading the project, Washington, D.C.-based PRP and Dallas-based KDC. Construction is scheduled to begin before the end of the year, and the facility is expected to be operational in early 2024. JLL represented Volkswagen in its site selection process. Volkswagen anticipates that at full capacity, the facility will be able to handle as many as 140,000 vehicle imports per year, primarily from its production hubs in Mexico and Europe.
ELIZABETHTOWN, PA. — Chicago-based First Industrial Realty Trust has inked a 1.1 million-square-foot lease with boohoo, an online fashion retailer based in the United Kingdom, at First Logistics Center @ 283 in Elizabethtown, a southeastern suburb of Harrisburg. Jeff Lockard, Paul Torosian, Ryan Barros and Kyle Lockard of JLL represented the landlord in the lease negotiations. First Industrial has also broken ground on a 700,000-square-foot building at the site that will feature a clear height of 40 feet, 143 loading doors, 194 trailer parking stalls and 318 car parking spaces. Completion of that building is scheduled for the second quarter of 2023.
VAN BUREN TOWNSHIP, MICH. — Our Next Energy (ONE), a Michigan-based energy storage technology company, has unveiled plans to invest $1.6 billion in a new battery cell manufacturing plant in Van Buren Township, about 28 miles southwest of Detroit. The recently constructed facility will be named ONE Circle and is expected to create 2,112 jobs when operating at full capacity by the end of 2027. The 659,589-square-foot facility will produce 200,000 electric vehicle battery packs annually. ONE will begin upgrades and equipment installation at the property in January 2023. Production at the plant is slated to begin in 2024. Ashley Capital owns the property, which is located at 42060 Ecorse Road within the Crossroads Distribution Center.
BUDA, TEXAS — A joint venture between Minneapolis-based United Properties and Los Angeles-based PCCP LLC has sold three industrial buildings totaling 474,465 square feet in Buda, located on the southern outskirts of Austin. The two rear-load buildings and one cross-dock building, which are situated on a 35.3-acre site, represent Phase I of a larger development known as Buda Midway. Combined, the structures feature 30- to 36-foot clear heights, 138 dock doors, 60 trailer parking stalls and 678 car parking spaces. Trent Agnew, Dustin Volz, Dom Espinosa, Josh Villarreal and Megan Babovec of JLL represented the seller in the transaction. The buyer and sales price were not disclosed. The buildings were fully leased at the time of sale. Phase II of Buda Midway will consist of four rear-load buildings totaling roughly 390,000 square feet.
GRAND PRAIRIE, TEXAS — Bridge Logistics Properties, an affiliate of Utah-based investment firm Bridge Investment Group Holdings (NYSE: BRDG), has purchased a 203,430-square-foot industrial facility in the central metroplex city of Grand Prairie. Situated on 12 acres, the property features 32-foot clear heights, 180-foot truck court depths, 42 dock-high doors and 49 trailer parking stalls. Kurt Griffin and Nathan Orbin of Cushman & Wakefield represented the undisclosed seller in the transaction.
MARSHALL, TEXAS — Partners, the firm formerly known as NAI Partners, has arranged the sale of a 19,598-square-foot industrial property located at 281 Gateway Park Road in Marshall, located near the Texas-Louisiana border. The sale included nine acres of undeveloped land. Josh Lass-Sughrue of Partners represented the seller, an entity doing business as Davis Property Partnership LLC, in the transaction. Colten Courtney, Brett Lum and Carlos Marquez, also with Partners, represented the buyer, R&S Empire Properties LLC.
DOUGLAS, MASS. — CRG, the development arm of Chicago-based construction engineering firm Clayco, has broken ground on The Cubes at Gilboa, a 1.1 million-square-foot industrial project in Douglas, about 20 miles south of Worcester. The facility will be situated on 85 acres and will feature a clear height of 40 feet, 171 dock doors, four drive-in doors, an ESFR sprinkler system and parking for 651 cars and 220 trailers. Lamar Johnson Collaborative is the project architect, and Clayco is the builder. Newmark is the leasing agent. Completion is slated for fall 2023.
Greystar Begins Work on 412,500 SF Warehouse, Distribution Center in East Bridgewater, Massachusetts
EAST BRIDGEWATER, MASS. — Greystar has begun construction on a 412,500-square-foot warehouse and distribution center at 798 N. Bedford St. in East Bridgewater, located south of Boston. The project, which is scheduled for a late 2023 delivery, will be the South Carolina-based developer’s first in the greater Boston area. Greystar has tapped JLL to lease the development.
CALHOUN, GA. — Seefried Properties has purchased a 56-acre site in Calhoun with plans to develop Grove 75 Logistics Center, a 738,720-square-foot industrial facility. The spec facility is expected to be completed in the third quarter of 2023. The Class A building will feature 40-foot clear heights, 167 dock-high cross-docking doors (including four drive-in doors), trailer and auto parking spaces, LED interior lighting, ESFR sprinklers and office space. Located on Union Grove Road, the site is located a half-mile from I-75 and near the newly developed Appalachian Regional Port. Project partners include general contractor The Conlan Co., civil engineer Southland Engineering and architectural firm Atlas Collaborative. Joseph Kriss, Tripp Ausband and Doug Smith of Seefried will handle the marketing and leasing for Grove 75 Logistics Center.
NORFOLK, VA. — Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer has secured the $20 million sale-leaseback of a 346,000-square-foot distribution facility located at 1129 Production Road in Norfolk. The undisclosed seller leased back a portion of the property, which is situated on a 18.3-acre site within Norfolk Industrial Park. An entity doing business as 1129 Production Road LLC purchased the property as part of a 1031 exchange. Clark Simpson, Erik Conradi, Geoff Poston and Clay Culbreth of Thalhimer represented the buyer in the transaction. Poston is the exclusive leasing representative for the property and is marketing the remaining industrial space for lease. Christina Erman, also with Thalhimer, has been named portfolio manager of the facility.