CARLISLE, PA-Spec development lives! Trammell Crow Co. and USAA Real Estate Co. have broken ground on a 700,000-square-foot Class A distribution facility at Mountain Creek Distribution Center here, to be completed this summer.
The area simply had run out of large industrial space, says Andrew Mele, SVP of Trammell Crow. “Even when the market was not in good condition, Central Pennsylvania continued to absorb space, particularly in big-box space,” Mele tells GlobeSt.com. “We were essentially down to one box, while the market absorbs three to four times that a year.”
By building now, for a completion late this year, Trammell Crow will have timed the market perfectly, he says. That is why USAA funded a rare project being developed without a lease in hand.
"The I-81 Distribution Corridor continues to be one of the most active markets in the country, with little to no availability for Class A space greater than 500,000 square feet," says Pat Duncan, chairman and CEO of USAA Real Estate Co. in the announcement.
Located on 113 acres at Exit 44 of Interstate 81, the two-building project is planned for LEED Core & Shell (CS) certification. The first building will have cross-dock loading, 32' clear ceiling heights, 60' x 47'6" typical bay spacing, ESFR sprinkler systems and onsite trailer storage.
Trammell Crow, under the direction of Mele and George Laigaie, will manage the day to day development responsibilities. A Jones Lang LaSalle team, led by John Van Buskirk and Jason Webb, has been engaged to market the project to potential tenants. Marketing already is well under way. “A number of tenants are kicking the tires,” Mele says.
Construction is still in the early stages, and marketing should pick up as the project literally takes shape. And spaces can be adapted as needed when leases are signed.
“We’re moving the dirt and prepping the pad,” Mele says. “We build as vanilla as possible.”
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