Lydon: Arizona offers both the industrial investor and the corporate employer best-of-class value opportunities within a larger, qualified workforce – it's the best of all worlds! Arizona's three primary universities are graduating almost 25,000 students annually, most of whom remain in the region, a sign that the state has significantly upped their educational “game.” Arizona's combined organic and out-of-market employment demand continues to outpace most other markets.

GlobeSt.com: What submarkets are hidden gem areas for distribution that many aren't talking about? Why should we be paying attention to them?

Lydon: Submarkets that lie proximate to recently completed, under construction or planned new freeway investment offer incredible supply chain/distribution opportunities for operational users and investors. The West Valley's recently completed Loop 303 and soon-to-commence Loop 202 (South Mountain Freeway) are two examples of this.

GlobeSt.com: What distribution trends will we be talking about in your market at this time next year?

Lydon: Clearly, dynamic and disruptive ecommerce activity will continue to push accretive demand for space. Additionally, the market will see sustained need for food-grade/cold storage space. Finally, we believe the Arizona market will become a preferred location for manufacturers seeking reasonably regulated, lower risk, lower cost business environments. We are forecasting a robust industrial supply chain market for the next 36 months.

JLL recently released its list of top 18 distribution markets. Markets from New Jersey, to Southeast Texas, to Florida and Minneapolis made the list, as GlobeSt.com previously reported. In addition, five West Coast markets made the cut. In this exclusive multi-part Q&A, GlobeSt.com chats with multiple industry sources on the West Coast industrial markets including SoCal, NorCal/Reno, Mountain Region, Desert Region and Pac Northwest. According to a source we spoke with about the Arizona market, the State offers both the industrial investor and the corporate employer best-of-class value opportunities within a larger, qualified workforce.

GlobeSt.com: Please describe one factor that makes Arizona a top distribution market.

Anthony Lydon, managing director of JLL Arizona: Arizona provides a strategic confluence linking the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach with manufacturing and assembly activities in Mexico. These neighbors—California to our west and Mexico to our South—represent the eighth and fifteenth largest global economies, respectively, and create a regional supply chain triad. The triad's trade scale and growth will outpace most other “regional” economies.

GlobeSt.com: What opportunities for industrial investors or tenants exist in Arizona?

Lydon: Arizona offers both the industrial investor and the corporate employer best-of-class value opportunities within a larger, qualified workforce – it's the best of all worlds! Arizona's three primary universities are graduating almost 25,000 students annually, most of whom remain in the region, a sign that the state has significantly upped their educational “game.” Arizona's combined organic and out-of-market employment demand continues to outpace most other markets.

GlobeSt.com: What submarkets are hidden gem areas for distribution that many aren't talking about? Why should we be paying attention to them?

Lydon: Submarkets that lie proximate to recently completed, under construction or planned new freeway investment offer incredible supply chain/distribution opportunities for operational users and investors. The West Valley's recently completed Loop 303 and soon-to-commence Loop 202 (South Mountain Freeway) are two examples of this.

GlobeSt.com: What distribution trends will we be talking about in your market at this time next year?

Lydon: Clearly, dynamic and disruptive ecommerce activity will continue to push accretive demand for space. Additionally, the market will see sustained need for food-grade/cold storage space. Finally, we believe the Arizona market will become a preferred location for manufacturers seeking reasonably regulated, lower risk, lower cost business environments. We are forecasting a robust industrial supply chain market for the next 36 months.