AEW Buys 1.3 MSF Distribution Center, Eyes Makeover

Image by Marcin via pixabay.com

Scout Cold Logistics, an affiliate of AEW Capital Management, has purchased a 1.3 million-square-foot industrial building in Manchester, Pa. The 129-acre site is currently undergoing a 15-month construction and redevelopment process meant to transform the property into a grocery distribution facility.

Situated at 1025 Locust Point Road, the building has been leased to United Natural Foods Inc. to support its expanding footprint in the area. It will be temperature-controlled and feature automation and technology solutions that enhance UNFI’s network operating efficiencies.

A lifestyle center will be included in the Manchester facility, along with a cross-dock configuration, 492 trailer parking spaces and some 1,300 car parking spaces.

Located on the Interstate 83 corridor, UNFI will have access to I-76, I-81 and I-78, connecting the company to the Greater Northeast and Mid-Atlantic areas. Less than 15 minutes away is UNFI’s York facility, which is also supporting the company’s Mid-Atlantic region customer base. The added Manchester distribution center will contribute toward overall Pennsylvania network capacity and delivery efficiency.

The grocery-oriented acquisition is one of Scout Cold Logistics’ several recent portfolio additions, bringing the company’s total food-centric property investments to 24, with a combined footprint of 10.6 million square feet and representing approximately $1.9 billion of total capital commitments.

Pennsylvania distribution centers

Another distribution center in Reading, Pa., recently landed Can Corp. of America Inc., a steel can manufacturer and supplier, as a tenant. The company signed a 114,550-square-foot lease out of the total 392,030-square-foot property.

With some 40 percent of the nation’s population within a day’s drive, Pennsylvania distribution facilities are in high demand. In the larger Philadelphia area, the industrial facility occupancy rate remained more than 96 percent throughout last year, while asking rental rates increased, according to a Newmark report.