The 1 million-square-foot Eastport Industrial Park in Varina has changed hands for the second time in four years. (Mike Platania photos)
Industrial news keeps coming out of eastern Henrico, where an industrial park changed hands in the second nine-figure real estate deal seen in the county this year and a tissue and towel manufacturer has just announced a sizable expansion.
The Eastport Industrial Park in Varina sold last week for $139 million, county records show. The roughly 86-acre park is located near the intersection of Charles City Road and East Laburnum Avenue.
Equus Capital Partners, a privately held real estate investment firm based near Philadelphia, was the buyer. The purchase was part of an industrial portfolio deal involving 75 properties totaling 5.4 million square feet across markets on the East Coast and through the Sun Belt.
In total, Eastport has about 1 million square feet of space across eight warehouses. Tenants at the park include dog treat company TDBBS, publicly traded aluminum and plastics manufacturer Tredegar Corp., and medical supply firm Sterilization Services of Virginia.
Equus Vice President of Acquisitions Tim Feron said the park is fully leased.
TDBBS, formerly known as Best Bully Sticks, has operated out of the industrial park since 2013.
About 15.5 acres of undeveloped land at the park’s southern end were also included in the deal. Per Henrico records, most of the Eastport industrial park was built in the late 1990s.
The seller was Prologis, a San Francisco logistics and real estate firm that bought the land by way of its acquisition of Pennsylvania-based REIT Liberty Property Trust two years ago.
Per its website, the firm was founded in 1980 and raises money through equity funds which it then uses to invest in or develop commercial and multifamily real estate projects.
Feron said this is Equus’ entrance into the Richmond market, noting that Eastport’s proximity to Richmond International Airport made it an even more enticing property in a sector that’s hot nationwide.
“Industrial in general is a favorable asset class for investors right now. There’s low vacancy rates across the country in virtually all markets,” Feron said. “The fundamentals are so strong in industrial right now, you’re definitely seeing that reflected in pricing.”
The other deal to break the $100 million barrier in Henrico this year was the late January sale of the 11 North at White Oak apartments for $154 million.
Hourigan constructed American Paper Converting’s new facility. (Courtesy of Henrico EDA)
American Paper Converting planning $17M expansion
Meanwhile, American Paper Converting, a tissue and paper towel manufacturer based in the Pacific Northwest, announced this week that it will relocate to a larger Henrico facility as part of a $17 million expansion of its East Coast operations.
The Washington-based company, which produces bathroom and facial tissue along with paper towel products, will move its current operation at 4401 Carolina Ave., beside Richmond Raceway, to a larger, 120,000-square-foot facility at 5801 Techpark Place in the county’s White Oak Technology Park.
The larger facility is expected to help American Paper increase production of its product lines. The company, which serves clients in health care, education, manufacturing, recreation, government and other sectors, expanded to Henrico in 2011.
The company’s current location on Carolina Avenue is owned by Prologis, which, like the Eastport park, acquired the property through its acquisition of Liberty Property Trust.
Eastport is next door to Mondelēz International, which recently announced it will invest $122.5 million in an expansion of its cookie and cracker bakery
at 6002 S. Laburnum Ave. That deal followed news of Coca-Cola Consolidated completing a $23 million expansion of its 300,000-square-foot manufacturing plant and distribution center at 500 Eastpark Court in Sandston.
Also in Varina, Hillwood Development is looking to rezone 530 acres for industrial and distribution uses. The acreage, which straddles East Williamsburg Road, is southeast of the Interstate 64-295 interchange and just north of White Oak Technology Park.
And farther south, Henrico supervisors this week approved a rezoning for Ashley Capital’s plan to develop a 584,000-square-foot warehouse near Varina High School.
• BizSense reporter Jonathan Spiers contributed to this report.
The 1 million-square-foot Eastport Industrial Park in Varina has changed hands for the second time in four years. (Mike Platania photos)
Industrial news keeps coming out of eastern Henrico, where an industrial park changed hands in the second nine-figure real estate deal seen in the county this year and a tissue and towel manufacturer has just announced a sizable expansion.
The Eastport Industrial Park in Varina sold last week for $139 million, county records show. The roughly 86-acre park is located near the intersection of Charles City Road and East Laburnum Avenue.
Equus Capital Partners, a privately held real estate investment firm based near Philadelphia, was the buyer. The purchase was part of an industrial portfolio deal involving 75 properties totaling 5.4 million square feet across markets on the East Coast and through the Sun Belt.
In total, Eastport has about 1 million square feet of space across eight warehouses. Tenants at the park include dog treat company TDBBS, publicly traded aluminum and plastics manufacturer Tredegar Corp., and medical supply firm Sterilization Services of Virginia.
Equus Vice President of Acquisitions Tim Feron said the park is fully leased.
TDBBS, formerly known as Best Bully Sticks, has operated out of the industrial park since 2013.
About 15.5 acres of undeveloped land at the park’s southern end were also included in the deal. Per Henrico records, most of the Eastport industrial park was built in the late 1990s.
The seller was Prologis, a San Francisco logistics and real estate firm that bought the land by way of its acquisition of Pennsylvania-based REIT Liberty Property Trust two years ago.
Per its website, the firm was founded in 1980 and raises money through equity funds which it then uses to invest in or develop commercial and multifamily real estate projects.
Feron said this is Equus’ entrance into the Richmond market, noting that Eastport’s proximity to Richmond International Airport made it an even more enticing property in a sector that’s hot nationwide.
“Industrial in general is a favorable asset class for investors right now. There’s low vacancy rates across the country in virtually all markets,” Feron said. “The fundamentals are so strong in industrial right now, you’re definitely seeing that reflected in pricing.”
The other deal to break the $100 million barrier in Henrico this year was the late January sale of the 11 North at White Oak apartments for $154 million.
Hourigan constructed American Paper Converting’s new facility. (Courtesy of Henrico EDA)
American Paper Converting planning $17M expansion
Meanwhile, American Paper Converting, a tissue and paper towel manufacturer based in the Pacific Northwest, announced this week that it will relocate to a larger Henrico facility as part of a $17 million expansion of its East Coast operations.
The Washington-based company, which produces bathroom and facial tissue along with paper towel products, will move its current operation at 4401 Carolina Ave., beside Richmond Raceway, to a larger, 120,000-square-foot facility at 5801 Techpark Place in the county’s White Oak Technology Park.
The larger facility is expected to help American Paper increase production of its product lines. The company, which serves clients in health care, education, manufacturing, recreation, government and other sectors, expanded to Henrico in 2011.
The company’s current location on Carolina Avenue is owned by Prologis, which, like the Eastport park, acquired the property through its acquisition of Liberty Property Trust.
Eastport is next door to Mondelēz International, which recently announced it will invest $122.5 million in an expansion of its cookie and cracker bakery
at 6002 S. Laburnum Ave. That deal followed news of Coca-Cola Consolidated completing a $23 million expansion of its 300,000-square-foot manufacturing plant and distribution center at 500 Eastpark Court in Sandston.
Also in Varina, Hillwood Development is looking to rezone 530 acres for industrial and distribution uses. The acreage, which straddles East Williamsburg Road, is southeast of the Interstate 64-295 interchange and just north of White Oak Technology Park.
And farther south, Henrico supervisors this week approved a rezoning for Ashley Capital’s plan to develop a 584,000-square-foot warehouse near Varina High School.
• BizSense reporter Jonathan Spiers contributed to this report.