Clarion Affiliate Secures $40M Loan for Baltimore Industrial Asset

Southside Logistics Center. Image courtesy of CIT

An affiliate of Clarion Partners has received a $39.6 million loan to finance the acquisition and development of Southside Logistics Center, a 483,000-square-foot industrial facility in Baltimore. The Real Estate Finance business of CIT, a division of First Citizens Bank, served as the sole lead arranger on the loan.

Southside Logistics Center is a two-building, Class A industrial facility located at 4601 and 4501 Curtis Ave. in the Curtis Bay industrial area. The site is less than 3 miles from the Port of Baltimore and nearly 9 miles from BWI Airport and is near several main interstate highways. The two buildings are under construction with one building set to be completed in May and the second building expected to deliver in August.

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Sean O’Connor, a senior vice president at Clarion Partners, said in a prepared statement Southside Logistics Center is in a prime location that will continue to improve because of the performance of the Port of Baltimore amid the increased demand in shipping transport. He called it a strategic acquisition and praised CIT’s expertise and agility in arranging financing for the transaction.

Chris Niederpruem, managing director and group head for CIT’s Real Estate Finance business, said in prepared remarks Clarion has built a strong portfolio of industrial properties across the country and the firm looks forward to supporting Clarion’s future investments.

Clarion Partners, a New York-based real estate investment and development firm with $71 billion in assets under management, has an industrial portfolio with more than 900 properties totaling approximately 206 million square feet in the U.S. and Europe.

Earlier industrial deals

In September, Clarion Partners teamed with Trammell Crow Co. as its capital partner to begin construction of 104th Commerce Park, a 1.2 million-square-foot industrial development in the metro Denver area. At full buildout, the project will feature five Class A buildings on an 89.6-acre site. Phase 1 includes two industrial buildings with 272,600 square feet and 298,300 square feet. Space will be available from 20,000 to 298,300 square feet.

The two firms previously invested in the development of Knox Logistics VII, a speculative Class A, 1.1 million-square-foot project in the Inland Empire in California.