$415M Industrial Park Secures Phase 1 Financing

At full build-out, Cherokee Commerce Center 85 will encompass 3.6 million square feet. Image courtesy of Ware Malcomb

Glenstar Properties has received $38.2 million in construction financing for the development of the first phase of the 3.6 million-square-foot Cherokee Commerce Center 85 in Gaffney, S.C.

CrossHarbor Capital Partners provided the loan. The building is slated for completion in the fourth quarter of 2024.

Chicago-based Glenstar is developing the Class A, five-building industrial park in partnership with Creek Lane Capital. Valued at $415 million, the project was first announced in the fall of 2022. Earlier this year, it was announced that construction would begin in spring. Later in July, the developers received the final approval for a tax incentive package from Cherokee County Council.

The development team includes Ware Malcomb as architect, SeamonWhiteside as civil engineer and The Conlan Co. as general contractor.

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Glenstar will begin sitework in preparation for the development of the first building, which will encompass 555,520 square feet, but will be expandable to as much as 1.3 million square feet. The facility, known as 2A, will feature 232 dock doors, four drive-in doors, 450 car parking spots and 452 trailer spaces.

The other four warehouses that will complete Cherokee Commerce Center 85 will range between 211,640 square feet and 1.7 million square feet and will feature 40-foot clear heights, 56-feet-by-50-feet column spacing and 60-foot speed bays.

The upcoming property is up for lease and according to a prepared statement from Glenstar Principal Brian Netzky, there is already interest from electric vehicle, semiconductor and battery manufacturers. The Colliers team consisting of Managing Directors John Montgomery and Garrett Scott, alongside Vice Presidents Brockton Hall and Dillon Swayngim are handling the leasing efforts.

Located along an industrial corridor

The industrial complex is taking shape on 290 acres, northeast of the intersection of Interstate 85 and Highway 105, along the industrial corridor between Greenville-Spartanburg, S.C., and Charlotte, N.C. The surrounding area is home to companies such as Freightliner CCC Distribution Center, Nestle Frozen Foods, Timken and DHL. CCC-85 will be 33 miles from the BMW Group Plan Spartanburg and 38 miles from Inland Port Greer in Upstate S.C.

According to a second quarter 2023 Colliers report on the South Carolina industrial market, 8.9 million square feet were delivered in the second quarter, with another 10 million square feet to be added in the third quarter. The market had 26.2 million square feet under construction and an overall vacancy rate of 5.9 percent. At the end of the second quarter, the Cherokee submarket had a 0.5 percent vacancy rate for a total inventory of 11.6 million square feet of industrial space.