"It's a gateway site. It has direct freeway access on a full-diamond interchange with 75th Avenue," Tony Lydon, a senior vice president with Grubb & Ellis/BRE Commercial's Phoenix office, tells GlobeSt.com. "It's the largest parcel of industrial dirt to be developedin that capacity."
The land, owned by Brooks Properties Ltd. since the late 1800s, is presently zoned for residential development. Buzz Oates and EJM split the purchase equally, Lydon says, with Oates taking the northern half of the site and EJM getting the southern half. Both buyers are confident the site can be rezoned for industrial development.
The deal is unique with the property going to two buyers, though both developers have different plans for their respective parcels, says Marc Hertzberg, a senior associate with Grubb & Ellis/BRE Commercial. Oates will develop large bulk cross-dock distributionspace on a speculative basis while EJM envisions smaller multi-tenant industrial buildings for small to mid-size companies. Ground could break on either project as early as fourth quarter Street improvements could begin even sooner.
"The genius was to identify two non-competitive developers," says Hertzberg. "Obviously, Buzz Oates intends to develop the larger bulk distribution space and EJM caters to smaller and mid-size users."
The land was a homestead for the Brooks family farm for at least two generations, with family members living on the property up until last year. With the passing of a grandmother a year ago and several heirs looking to liquidate, the family decided the time was right to sell, Lydon says.
The developers' plans should serve them well, with Southwest Valley's prominence as a busy industrial corridor. The site is only a quarter mile from the 75th Avenue/Interstate 10 interchange and located near Target's brand-new regional distribution center. Industrial vacancies have improved over the last three years, with latest numbers hovering around the 10% mark for the submarket.
"This is a very rare purchase. The fact is that there are very few parcels this size that could cater to industrial development," Lydon says. "On a geometric basis, the amount of developable sites in the Southwest Valley is shrinking dramatically." Lydon and Hertzberg represented the buyers in the deal.
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