CapRock Breaks Ground on Inland Empire Industrial Project

Saddle Ranch Phase II. Rendering courtesy of PREMIER Design + Build Group.

CapRock Partners has broken ground on a three-building speculative project in Norco, Calif. The developer hired PREMIER Design + Build Group to lead the construction activity of Saddle Ranch Phase II, estimated to come online in the third quarter of 2022.

The project is adjacent to the first phase of Saddle Ranch, a four-building warehouse complex that was completed in 2019 and sold this year to Alere Property Group for $114 million, according to CommercialEdge. Other partners include RGA Office of Architectural Design, X Engineering as civil engineer and Darin Fong and Associates Inc. as structural engineer.

Saddle Ranch Phase II will rise on a 23.8-acre site, at 3166 Horseless Carriage Drive. The buildings will comprise a total of 387,180 square feet of industrial space, ranging in size from 99,940 to 154,600 square feet. Some features include 32-foot clear heights, 8,000 amps of power in each building, ESFR system, three drive-in and 35 dock-high doors.

Parking is estimated to accommodate roughly 36 trailers and 309 vehicles. The warehouses are situated near Interstate 15 and about 60 miles from the Port of Los Angeles.

In August, CapRock Partners secured a $45.7 million construction loan for Saddle Ranch Phase II, funded by Quadreal Finance, CommercialEdge data shows.

A desirable market

The current supply chain crisis has led to record-breaking bottlenecks, especially on the West Coast, where the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are experiencing massive delays. Still, markets like the Inland Empire continue to thrive in this environment, as demand for both first- and last-mile logistics remains elevated. In September, vacancy in the Inland Empire reached 1.1 percent, one of the lowest in the nation, while rents continue to grow at a fast pace (up 6.1 percent year-over-year).

With developable land hard to come by, companies like CapRock Partners, which acquired vast tracts of land for speculative development, thrive. The developer broke ground on a different industrial project this month, also in Norco—Palomino Business Park will be developed in three phases, totaling around 2 million square feet upon completion, on a 111.7-acre site roughly 2 miles south of the Saddle Ranch property.

In Phoenix, the company broke ground last month on the largest speculative development in the city. CapRock estimates it will invest around $200 million for the development of West 202 Logistics, which is planned to comprise 3.4 million square feet.