Another Chicago-based real estate firm purchased land along the Loop 303 corridor this summer with plans to develop Cactus 303, a massive $150 million industrial park in Surprise.
In June, Baker Development Corporation, a privately owned real estate developer, purchased 81 acres of land on the northeast corner of Loop 303 and Cactus Road from Phoenix-based RED Development for nearly $20 million, according to real estate database Vizzda.
The developer, BDC, was represented by JLL managing directors Anthony Lydon and Marc Hertzberg and executive vice president Riley Gilbert, who will also serve as the industrial leasing brokers for Cactus 303.
BDC, a privately owned real estate developer based in Chicago, has developed 800,000 square feet of warehouse or distribution center product in Goodyear and has 2 million square feet planned in the greater Phoenix area.
The planned industrial project on the land in Surprise will consist of 1 million square feet in seven, class A industrial buildings with a complementary retail component along the front of Cactus Road, according to the developer. It’s also poised to create hundreds of jobs and “bolster the business and residential ecosystem that is the West Valley’s backbone,” JLL's Gilbert said in a statement.
“The Loop 303-fronting location will also allow the project to accommodate a wide range of signature corporate development opportunities including last-mile fulfillment, light assembly, flex office-showroom and even commercial retail,” Gilbert said.
CONSTRUCTION STARTS IN 2022
Several tenants have expressed interest in the project, but Gilbert said he was unable to share the names of the businesses.
Construction on the project is expected to start in early 2022, while phase one will be completed by the end of 2022, the companies said. Features of the building will be 32-to-40-foot clear height, dock high and grade level doors, up to 200-foot truck courts and extensive and expandable auto and trailer parking.
Gilbert said the developer became aware of the site in the fourth quarter of last year and "moved quickly to secure it." Escrow opened in February 2021 and closing was expedited to accelerate developing the site and meet the "growing demand" for industrial product, according to JLL, who said the buyer closed less than 120 days from opening escrow.
The developer has been in direct discussion with the city of Surprise and is currently working through site plan review, Gilbert said.
The seven buildings will range from 82,000 to 378,600 square feet. All buildings will be able to accommodate a single building user or can be divided for flexible size offerings for multi-tenant requirements. The site can also accommodate potential build-to-suit users of up to 600,000 square feet who are looking for branding opportunities and immediate access along the Loop 303, the developer said.
The retail pads will range from .75 acres to 16 acres and are available for sale or ground lease through SRS principals Ed Beeh, Chuck Gibson and Robbie Petty.
SLEW OF LOOP 303 CORRIDOR PROJECTS
The purchase in Surprise came in June, about a month before Chicago-based Cresset Real Estate Partners and Clarius Partners closed on 98 acres of land along the Loop 303 in Glendale. Cactus 303 will add to other developments such as Park303, Sarival Logistics Center and Camelback 303 in the quickly expanding corridor, which experts say is growing due to e-commerce and manufacturing demands, available land and proximity to transportation corridors and Southern California.
The developer said they chose the site in Surprise at the “right place at the right time."
"The Loop 303 corridor is in the path of growth and will continue to be for the foreseeable future, considering a confluence of market dynamics on the I-10 to the south and (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.'s) $20 to $30 billion investment to the north. These economic drivers converge in the Loop 303 market," said Daniel Slack, BDC's principal leading the development.
Gilbert said the project will have a "significant impact" on Surprise, which has an industrial base of about 3 million square feet with less than 1% vacancy.
"Cactus 303 will boost that inventory by approximately 33%, bringing with it high-quality employers and several hundred jobs to the growing population in the greater northwest Valley" Gilbert said in an email.
The buildings front Loop 303 with immediate access through Cactus Road and other points of entry and exits. The developer said it will be located within a “robust” labor pool and a community of corporate neighbors such as Red Bull, White Claw, Ball Enclosure, Crescent Crown and Expeditors.
The industrial park will also sit within the Prasada master-planned community in Surprise, which features single-family homes, a 180-acre auto mall and a 60-acre power center. The master plan is being developed in partnership between Suburban Land Reserve Inc., Macerich Development, WDP Partners and RED Development.
The entire community is on both sides of Loop 303, between Greenway Road and Peoria Avenue.
The project architect is Butler Design Group. Layton Construction will serve as the general contractor and Hunter Engineering will be the engineer on the project.