News
INDUSTRIAL STRENGTH
May 19, 2011
| Yesterday CBRE'S John Wilhide told us a tightening Class-A industrial market means there's "light at the end of the tunnel." |
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| Looks like John is memorizing his lines for our June 7 Baltimore Industrial Real Estate Summit, where he'll be speaking. ($39 if yousign up today.)He tells us development north of the Ft. McHenry Tunnel will be driven by port growth. Rents are too low to justify new construction now, but don't be shocked to see some dirt moving early in 2012. Construction costs on a new Class-A building can easily exceed $70 to $80/SF, he says, and investors chasing 9%-plus returns need rates around $6.75/SF for office/warehouse and $5.50/SF triple-net for bulk industrial properties. Over the next 18 months John expects absorption to pick up in Class-B product on the B-W Corridor (the amount of available Class-A space is dwindling). |
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| He also says the Port of Baltimore stands to benefit from the widening of the Panama Canal, which finishes in 2014. The only problem is that outbound freight trains can't ?double-stack? containers because the Howard St. Tunnel has a low clearance. John tells us a solution is in the works: rail company CSX is looking for a transfer facility site near Jessup where trains can convert from single- to double-stacking. |
