LACERA Sells Phoenix Flex Industrial Portfolio

1100 and 1150 W. Grove Parkway. Image courtesy of Cushman & Wakefield

Magnolia Industrial Park LLC, a San Diego-based private investor, has acquired a two-building industrial/flex office portfolio in Tempe, Ariz. Investment advisor LACERA sold the 158,507-square-foot asset for $23.6 million, according to Maricopa County records.

Executive Managing Director Chris Toci, Vice Chairman Eric Wichterman and Managing Director Mike Coover with Cushman & Wakefield’s Capital Markets and Private Capital Markets team in Phoenix represented the seller. Executive Managing Director Jerry Roberts alongside Managing Director Pat Boyle provided leasing advisory.

The portfolio encompasses a 54,301-square-foot, one-story Class B building that came online in 1996, for which LACERA paid $6.2 million in 1998 as part of a portfolio transaction with Plumwood Corp., CommercialEdge data shows. The second Class B building, at 104,206 square feet, came online in 1997. The property offers a total of 1,119 parking spaces, controlled access, open office layouts and 22-foot clear heights. The option to be converted into industrial space was a priority for the new owner, according to prepared remarks from Eric Wichterman.

Combined, the two buildings were approximately 67 percent leased at the time of the sale. The larger building is 78 percent leased to Grainger, a distributor of maintenance, repair and operating products.

The property is located at 1100 and 1150 W. Grove Parkway, some 15 miles from downtown Phoenix, has access to Interstate 10 and is in close proximity to Loop 202. Corporate neighbors in the surrounding area include Walmart, Swire Coca Cola USA and IKEA, among others.

Recent deals around Loop 202

Cushman & Wakefield recently brokered three other transactions in the industrial sector around Loop 202. Libitzky Property Cos. acquired Gateway Technology Commerce Center, a 138,692-square-foot industrial park in Mesa, Ariz., while Fidelity Investments paid $40.2 million for a two-building, 216,322-square-foot industrial property in Chandler, Ariz. Earlier in spring, Stonelake Capital Partners paid $38.2 million to acquire a 249,904-square-foot asset in Tolleson, Ariz., fully occupied by Circle K.

In the first four months of 2023, Phoenix registered $484 million in industrial sales, according to a recent CommercialEdge report. The average sale price for industrial assets continued to grow, despite a lower sales volume as a result of higher interest rates. Phoenix registered an average price of $191 per square feet year-to-date as of April, higher than the $134 national average.