The two buildings sit on 13.5 acres in the city’s Southside. (Courtesy North River Capital)
A Southside industrial deal has marked the inaugural transaction for two newly established firms, including one from a local real estate industry veteran who recently struck out on his own.
Last week the two-building industrial complex at 1700 Richmond Highway sold for $11 million. The buyer was a joint venture between Baltimore-based Feldman Bergin Properties, Georgia’s North River Capital, and locally based Queenswood Partners.
The purchase is the first for both Queenswood and North River Capital.
Behind Queenswood is Andy Little, who launched the firm earlier this year after a nearly 30-year run at John B. Levy & Co. North River’s founder Sam Wilmoth is a Richmond native now based in Georgia and, like Little, started his company earlier in 2024 after years at another real estate firm.
The last member of the new ownership team, Feldman Bergin Properties, is already familiar with the Richmond market, having previously bought a Shockoe Bottom apartment building as well as a strip center and office park in the West End. It had been more three years since Feldman Bergin’s last Richmond-area purchase.
The two industrial buildings at 1700 Richmond Highway sit on nearly 14 acres just south of the Model Tobacco apartments, and their 230,000 square feet is only about 30 percent leased. The lone tenant is trucking logistics company Napa Transportation, which was the seller in the deal and signed a lease for 71,000 square feet following the sale.
The sale closed July 24. The city most recently assessed the property at $3 million. Thalhimer’s Bo McKown and Isaac DeRegibus, and Newmark’s Will Bradley and Mark Williford worked the deal. Thalhimer’s investment arm also recently made a deal along the same stretch last fall when it bought the neighboring warehouse at 1806 Richmond Highway for $4.2 million.
Andy Little
Little, who had been with Levy & Co. for nearly 30 years, said when got connected with North River and Feldman Bergin it became clear they all had a similar real estate strategy, one they intend to employ at the South Richmond site.
“The strategy is basically, ‘Let’s find some infill buildings that are kind of overlooked, put some money into them and attract tenants that are looking for a value,’” Little said.
The new owners are planning to invest an additional $2 million into renovating the 74-year-old warehouses with new dock doors, roof, paint and lighting.
Wilmoth said while they’d love to have a single tenant come in and take the remaining space on Richmond Highway, they’re anticipating subdividing it into roughly 50,000-square-foot bays.
“The tenants that we’re trying to target are what I’d call the blue collar supply chain types – the construction suppliers and building suppliers,” Wilmoth said.
The new owners have enlisted another relatively new firm, Range Commercial Partners, to lease out the remaining square footage. Range’s Matt Anderson and Harrison McVey have the listing.
As for future deals for North River Capital, Wilmoth said the firm is looking to stay exclusively in the industrial industry.
“The core focus is to acquire industrial assets like the one we just bought: well-located warehouses that have some functional obsolescence or a value-add requirement,” said Wilmoth.
Little said he’s open to having Queenswood invest in other types of real estate, including multifamily assets.
Of his departure from Levy & Co. after nearly three decades, Little said he left the company at the end of 2023 on good terms.
“We were very amicable. I just thought it’s time for a bit of a change on my part,” he said. “I’m just scratching an itch I’ve had for many years.”
The two buildings sit on 13.5 acres in the city’s Southside. (Courtesy North River Capital)
A Southside industrial deal has marked the inaugural transaction for two newly established firms, including one from a local real estate industry veteran who recently struck out on his own.
Last week the two-building industrial complex at 1700 Richmond Highway sold for $11 million. The buyer was a joint venture between Baltimore-based Feldman Bergin Properties, Georgia’s North River Capital, and locally based Queenswood Partners.
The purchase is the first for both Queenswood and North River Capital.
Behind Queenswood is Andy Little, who launched the firm earlier this year after a nearly 30-year run at John B. Levy & Co. North River’s founder Sam Wilmoth is a Richmond native now based in Georgia and, like Little, started his company earlier in 2024 after years at another real estate firm.
The last member of the new ownership team, Feldman Bergin Properties, is already familiar with the Richmond market, having previously bought a Shockoe Bottom apartment building as well as a strip center and office park in the West End. It had been more three years since Feldman Bergin’s last Richmond-area purchase.
The two industrial buildings at 1700 Richmond Highway sit on nearly 14 acres just south of the Model Tobacco apartments, and their 230,000 square feet is only about 30 percent leased. The lone tenant is trucking logistics company Napa Transportation, which was the seller in the deal and signed a lease for 71,000 square feet following the sale.
The sale closed July 24. The city most recently assessed the property at $3 million. Thalhimer’s Bo McKown and Isaac DeRegibus, and Newmark’s Will Bradley and Mark Williford worked the deal. Thalhimer’s investment arm also recently made a deal along the same stretch last fall when it bought the neighboring warehouse at 1806 Richmond Highway for $4.2 million.
Andy Little
Little, who had been with Levy & Co. for nearly 30 years, said when got connected with North River and Feldman Bergin it became clear they all had a similar real estate strategy, one they intend to employ at the South Richmond site.
“The strategy is basically, ‘Let’s find some infill buildings that are kind of overlooked, put some money into them and attract tenants that are looking for a value,’” Little said.
The new owners are planning to invest an additional $2 million into renovating the 74-year-old warehouses with new dock doors, roof, paint and lighting.
Wilmoth said while they’d love to have a single tenant come in and take the remaining space on Richmond Highway, they’re anticipating subdividing it into roughly 50,000-square-foot bays.
“The tenants that we’re trying to target are what I’d call the blue collar supply chain types – the construction suppliers and building suppliers,” Wilmoth said.
The new owners have enlisted another relatively new firm, Range Commercial Partners, to lease out the remaining square footage. Range’s Matt Anderson and Harrison McVey have the listing.
As for future deals for North River Capital, Wilmoth said the firm is looking to stay exclusively in the industrial industry.
“The core focus is to acquire industrial assets like the one we just bought: well-located warehouses that have some functional obsolescence or a value-add requirement,” said Wilmoth.
Little said he’s open to having Queenswood invest in other types of real estate, including multifamily assets.
Of his departure from Levy & Co. after nearly three decades, Little said he left the company at the end of 2023 on good terms.
“We were very amicable. I just thought it’s time for a bit of a change on my part,” he said. “I’m just scratching an itch I’ve had for many years.”
Curious where the money comes from for these transactions? Thalhimers
Investments – is that a private equity firm – bank ? thanks.