John McCloud is editor of Industry Property Journal, from which this article is excerpted.

Colon, Panama—A consortium of Taiwanese investors is selling what is believed to be the last developable waterfront parcel at the Atlantic end of the Panama Canal. The 167-acre parcel, known as Isla Margarita, is a former US Naval base that has been in private hands for 15 years.

Colliers International's multimodal services group in Los Angeles has the sales marketing assignment, and, according to John Carver, the group's executive director, developers of warehousing, freight consolidation and cargo handling properties are one of the two buyer categories initially being targeted. Residential and resort developers comprise the second category.

The offering anticipates a $5.25-billion canal expansion program that Panamanian authorities approved last year. The expansion comes in response to a spike in ship traffic due to the increase in imports from Asia. Expansion plans include creation of a new lane of traffic exiting and entering the canal. Work will start next year and be complete around 2015.