Remodel aims to meet industrial space need
For several years, the Montgomery Plaza building once occupied by entertainment company iT’Z has sat empty.
But Goodman Realty Group, the owner of the 53,000-squarefoot complex at 4595 San Mateo NE, has plans to bring some life back into the building — albeit in a much different way.
The company is planning on redeveloping the building from a massive entertainment center into an industrial warehouse space with refrigeration, according to company vice president Scott Goodman.
“It is a creative reuse of existing real estate,” he said.
The space is being marketed for food manufacturers and “last-mile distributors” — shipping companies that transport items from a nearby shipping center to the final destination.
In 2016, following the closure of iT’Z, marketing agent Anthony Johnson of Pegasus Realty said the space allowed for possibilities outside of entertainment spaces and listed offices and even a school as possible options for the tenants.
The project may not be the only venture into industrial space that Goodman Realty is making. Goodman said there is the possibility of bringing another 50,000 square feet of industrial warehouse space to the area.
According to a 2019 report released by CBRE, the Albuquerque industrial market has leased more space than what was vacated for three straight years, and the current vacancy rate of 3.1% is a record low for the local market.
“There continues to be pent-up demand for industrial property, specifically owner-user property with yard space, as indicated by the strong pre-leasing activity in the few speculative developments that have been constructed,” the report said.
Goodman acknowledged that the development of the center would bring infill and “refrigerated industrial space to a tight market.”
Goodman said the timeline of the project is still in the works and dependent on getting a lease signed, but he estimates that construction on the redevelopment will begin in about six months. He said the cost of the development is not currently known.
Several other new industrial spaces around Albuquerque have been in the works this year. The Ben E. Keith facility at 601 Gallatin Place NW broke ground in late 2019 and will add around 261,000 square feet of dry, cool and frozen storage space. A high-pressure processing facility from New Mexico Fresh Foods, LLC, is slated to open in Northeast Albuquerque in 2021 will also feature industrial cold-storage space for rent.
The Dawgs have stopped barking
Burque’s Burgers and Dawgs, the gourmet fast food lunch space in the Southeast Heights, is the latest restaurant casualty of the coronavirus.
Owner Gil Stewart said the restaurant never reopened after the virus-related shut down.
The restaurant, at 2025 Ridgecrest SE, served a variety of hot dogs including the Enchilada Dog, which came wrapped in a corn tortilla with chile, burgers, frito pie and elote.
“It was a very popular lunch spot on the Gibson corridor,” Stewart wrote in an email. “Although less than a year old, it was picking up momentum before the pandemic hit.”
Located near the San Mateo and Gibson intersection, it was one of the few locally owned restaurants in an area that is largely populated by fast-food chains.
“It will be missed,” Stewart said.
Stewart previously made a name for himself and his unique hot dogs in 2017 when he was featured on a Travel Channel’s “Food Paradise” episode focusing on fair foods. His stand at the New Mexico State Fair Casa Dog, was featured for its Enchilada Dog.