Link Logistics Partnership Pays $62M for Inland Empire Redevelopment Site

1375 Magnolia Ave. Image courtesy of Cushman & Wakefield

A partnership between Link Logistics and Western RealCo has acquired a 16.5-acre industrial redevelopment site in Corona, Calif. Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller, McWane Inc. According to Riverside County records, the plumbing manufacturer pocketed $61.7 million from the sale of the asset. McWane had been operating at the location prior to the sale.

The property at 1375 Magnolia Ave. consists of 157,421 square feet of industrial space across five warehouses built in the 1950s. The current owner has the option of demolishing the existing structures to make room for new development. The site allows for more than 300,000 square feet of warehouse space, according to Cushman & Wakefield. The buyer did not announce plans for the location.

The asset is approximately 55 miles east of the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, via the nearby US Route 91, while The Ontario International airport is roughly 16 miles to the north via Interstate 15.

The Cushman & Wakefield’s National Industrial Advisory team that represented the seller included Jeff Chiate, Mike Adey and Brad Brandenburg.

Inland Empire leads the way

The partnership’s recent acquisition is in one of the best-performing industrial hubs nationwide. The size of the site as well as its location in a high barrier-to-entry Southern Californian market a tremendous redevelopment opportunity, Cushman & Wakefield Vice-President Jeff Chiante said in prepared remarks.

According to the latest CommercialEdge report, demand for industrial space in the Inland Empire is peaking, spurred by the expansion of e-commerce. The market leads the way for occupancy, with a tight 1 percent vacancy rate as of November 2021, considerably below the 3.8 percent national vacancy average.

Despite considerable land constraints, construction activity is also bustling. As of November, there was 25.6 million square feet of industrial space under development in the Inland Empire, representing 4.3 percent of existing inventory.

Just recently, JLL helped arrange an $81.6 million construction loan for a build-to-suit facility in Beaumont, Calif. The project is part of a 2.8 million-square-foot logistics park USAA Real Estate is developing in partnership with McDonald Property Group.