Radnor real estate group invests big in Berks industry
A joint venture purchased 12 industrial buildings for $77.6 million
A pair of commercial real estate firms combined to purchase 12 industrial buildings in Berks County, including the entire Berks Corporate Center in Muhlenberg Township, for a total of $77.6 million.
The joint venture between Washington, D.C.headquartered ASB Real Estate Investments and Radnor-based Endurance Real Estate Group, LLC acquired just short of one million square feet in industrial property dubbed the Lehigh Valley West Industrial Portfolio in the transaction.
The buildings — two of which are located in Exeter Township — were dubbed in a Feb. 22 announcement as “prime location” due to their access to major highways, proximity to numerous large metropolitan areas and Canada, and Berks’ ample blue-collar workforce.
“This acquisition continues one of our longterm strategies of buying well-located but difficult to replace light industrial assets,” Jared Newman, senior vice president of acquisitions for Endurance, said in a statement.
“We remain bullish on Berks County, and specifically the Reading-area submarket, as we have been for more than a decade.”
Endurance recently completed the separate purchase of three more Berks warehouses: the Alpek Polyester plastic bottle recycling center and the newly constructed Berks 222 industrial campus, all in Muhlenberg.
What buildings were part of the sale?
Nine of the 12 buildings in the Lehigh Valley West Industrial Portfolio are located in the Berks Corporate Center situated just off of northbound Route 61.
That industrial park on Corporate Drive — which can be accessed via either Route 61 or Tuckerton Road — houses a variety of businesses, including warehouses for sneaker retailer Villa and pet food manufacturer F.M. Brown’s Sons, retailers such as construction materials provider LL Flooring and men’s clothier Paul Fredrick, and other service providers like security firm GardaWorld.
The nine buildings total 466,420 square feet.
A tenth building is located on the opposite side of the Tuckerton Road where it accesses Corporate Drive in what is known as the Route 61 Distribution Center.
The largest single individual structure in the portfolio at 392,030 square feet, the distribution center building houses multiple warehouses including for Frito-Lay and Landis Logistics.
The Muhlenberg facilities are all located less than 20 miles south, or roughly a 25-minute drive, from Interstate 78.
Two more properties in Exeter are right down the street from one another and only minutes from Route 422.
A 57,000-square-foot, multi-tenant building containing Ehrlich Pest Control and Ludgate Engineering, among others, at 10 Vanguard Drive, as well as a 13,200 squarefoot space in the Lincoln Corporate Center on Lincoln Road.
What are the plans for these buildings?
No imminent changes are announced for any of the properties, as the purchase was repeatedly described in terms of an investment.
Proximity to the Lehigh Valley and major metros such as Philadelphia, Baltimore, New York City and Washington D.C., as well as Berks County’s and the region’s large blue-collar labor pool, were cited as reasons for the properties’ value.
In other words, real estate firms like ASB and Endurance want in on the rapid build-up of industry and transport in the area.
“This investment provides an excellent opportunity to own a well located, infill industrial portfolio with access to a strong labor base and proximity to one of the premier industrial markets in the country,” said Brodie Ruland, ASB managing director and co-head of acquisitions.
“The Lehigh Valley offers a robust labor pool and is situated within two hours of New York ports and within a one-day drive of 48% of the U.S. population.”
According to a release, the acquisition added $1.5 billion in industrial asset purchases for ASB since 2018, with its nationwide distribution markets now totaling over 13.3 million square feet.
It is ASB’s fifth joint venture with Endurance, which itself has amassed a large portfolio since its launch in 2002.
The Radnor-based real estate owner and developer currently holds and operates 59 buildings totaling 7.6 million square feet across the Mid-Atlantic region.