EQT Exeter Pays $60M for 642 KSF Phoenix Facility

EQT Exeter has acquired a 641,906-square-foot industrial facility in Buckeye, Ariz., for $60.1 million. It will rebrand the asset as I-10 Gateway. Developer BET Investments sold the vacant property.

The divisible building represents the first phase of Buckeye I-10 Logistics, a 145-acre master-planned park. BET Investments received city approvals last year for the development of an additional facility of nearly 1.2 million square feet. A third building, measuring 448,913 square feet, is also planned.

I-10 Gateway broke ground in 2022 and came online last year. Features at the 40-acre property include 40-foot clear heights, 124 dock-high loading doors, four drive-in doors and 500 parking stalls, as well as 60-foot speed bays and 190-foot truck courts.

Additionally, the warehouse has heavy trailer parking and speculative office space. The building is at 440 N. 215th Ave., some 27 miles from downtown Phoenix and 31 miles from Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

Cushman & Wakefield Executive Vice Chair Will Strong, Senior Director Kirk Kuller and Director Michael Matchett, along with Senior Associates Molly Hunt and Dean Wiley brokered the transaction on behalf of both parties. Executive Managing Director Andy Markham and Executive Vice Chair Mike Haenel will serve as leasing brokers.

Phoenix maintains lead for industrial development

Phoenix ranked first nationwide for industrial development, with 42.7 million square feet underway as of February, a recent CommercialEdge report shows. In terms of sales, the metro registered $298 million in assets change hands in the first two months of the year, at an average of $168 per square foot—$36 above the U.S. figure. Among Western markets, only Los Angeles ($435 million) and the Bay Area ($321 million) surpassed Phoenix for total sales volume.

In March, Cohen Asset Management bought Elwood Rising, a 120,000-square-foot speculative facility in Goodyear, Ariz. Atlas Capital Partners sold the asset for $21.8 million.

Earlier this year, Clarion Partners sold a six-building industrial portfolio in Gilbert, Ariz. ViaWest Group acquired the 428,427-square-foot property for $71.1 million.