Lincoln Property Co. Launches Atlanta Industrial Projects

Shannon 85 Distribution Center. Image courtesy of Lincoln Property Co. Southeast

Lincoln Property Co. Southeast has broken ground on two speculative warehouse/distribution centers in Atlanta’s Interstate 85 South industrial corridor totaling 600,000 square feet that are scheduled for completion by the second quarter of 2020.

The larger of the two spec properties is Mason Road Distribution Center, a 386,374-square-foot building located just off South Fulton Parkway that will also have build to suit office space. It features front-load configuration, 36-foot clear high, 60-foot speed bays and 300-foot building depth. Other features will be 67 dock-high doors, two drive-in doors, 2000 amp electrical service, LED motion-sensored lighting and up to 90 trailer storage spaces and 330 automobile parking spaces.

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Shannon 85 Dist ribution Center is a 209,192-square-foot facility located at the intersection of Shannon Parkway and Mall Boulevard, less than 1 mile off Interstate 85. The building will feature rear-load configuration, 32-foot clear height, 60-foot speed bays and 310-foot building depth. It will have 30 dock-high doors, two drive-in doors and up to 50 trailer storage spaces and 421 auto parking spaces. Shannon 85 will also have build-to-suit office space and other features similar to the Mason Road site.

Mason Road Distribution Center. Image courtesy of Lincoln Property Co. Southeast

Denton Shamburger, Lincoln vice president, noted in a prepared statement that both buildings are located in one of metro Atlanta’s strongest industrial markets that can be used for a range of 3PL, e-commerce, logistics, manufacturing or warehouse tenants. He said the properties have easy access to interstates, the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and intermodal facilities and also have proximity to the Port of Savannah. Other tenants in the area included Amazon, Google, Kraft Foods and Procter & Gamble, Shamburger said.

Last November, LPC Southeast and Crow Holdings Capital Real Estate began construction on Factor Shoals Distribution Center, a 251,466-square-foot spec warehouse and distribution facility in Lithia Springs, Ga. The building is located in Atlanta’s Interstate 20 West/Fulton industrial submarket at the southwest corner of Thornton and Factory Shoal roads with immediate access to Interstate 20.

Strong industrial market

The Atlanta area industrial market has remained strong this year despite the trade and tariff tensions. More than 5.4 million square feet of new lease transactions were signed in the third quarter and the market is on pace to exceed the five-year average annual figure of 23.6 million square feet leased, according to Cushman & Wakefield’s third-quarter industrial report for Atlanta. The report, which also cites import activity coming through the airport and the Savannah port, said the highest net occupancy gains during the third quarter were seen in the I-20 West/Fulton industrial, I-85 South/Peachtree City and I-75 South/Henry County submarkets. Strong absorption has driven the area’s overall vacancy rate to a recent historical low.

The Cushman & Wakefield report notes that metro Atlanta is on pace to complete a record-breaking number of new construction projects in 2019. About 14.5 million square feet has been completed so far this year and another 9.5 million square feet is expected to deliver by the end of the year, up nearly 33 percent from last year’s previous construction record. While the outlook for 2020 remains strong because of the region’s status as a critical distribution hub and the economic center of the Southeast, Cushman & Wakefield does expect the vacancy rate to increase moderately as large speculation projects deliver in the new year.

West Coast industrial

Lincoln is also active in the industrial sector in other parts of the United States. In September, Lincoln and Crow Holdings Group acquired a 174,000-square-foot, three-building industrial portfolio in San Diego for $30.3 million from PepsiCo. The bottling company is leasing the asset, located about 2 miles from Interstate 805, for 18 to 24 months from the new owners. Also in San Diego, earlier this month LPC West acquired a 62,400-square-foot industrial building in the Sorrento Mesa submarket, marking the Lincoln subsidiary’s fourth San Diego industrial purchase this year.