Spec industrial project under way at TRIC

Construction is under way on the first new speculative industrial building in the Reno-Sparks region since 2008.

SJS Commercial Real Estate of Deerfield, Ill., headed by Marc Siegel, is building the 524,800-square-foot Gateway Commerce Center at Tahoe Reno Industrial Center east of Sparks. SJS owns other properties in parts of the Midwest, but this is the company’s first foray into northern Nevada.

The dwindling supply of Class-A industrial space in the region prompted SJS to move on the 34-acre parcel at the corner of Waltham Way and USA Parkway.

“We saw a need for additional Class-A commercial space in the West,” Siegel says. “We are excited about coming in to this market.”

Several new industrial buildings have been erected in recent years, most notably Urban Outfitters Internet fulfillment center in Stead and the NOW Foods facility in Sparks. Those buildings, though, were build-to-suit projects for clients with specific needs.

Tahoe Reno Industrial Center, like other industrial submarkets in northern Nevada, suffered from a glut of inventory when the recession began thinning out businesses in late 2008 and throughout the next several years. In TRIC alone, there was more than 3 million square feet of inventory that needed to be absorbed, says Lance Gilman, director of marketing for Tahoe Reno Industrial Center LLC.

That space has since been leased out, Gilman says.

“We have been incredibly busy out at TRI — we have 1,455,000 square feet of new companies or companies being relocated, and in last three months we have created 539 new jobs. TRI has been churning for many months now.”

SJS expects to complete the Gateway Commerce Center project in the first quarter of 2014. To date, it has not yet selected a general contractor but sitework is being performed by F&P Construction.

Randy Pitts, president of F&P Construction, expects to move about 150,000 yards of dirt during mass grading and should have the site ready for flatwork in mid-June. F&P also has been contracted to do the dirtwork for site utilities.

“It’s been about five years since we had a job of this type,” Pitts says. “It’s been a long dry spell.”

SJS purchased the site of three joined properties from Nevada State Bank. Siegel says he has not yet chosen a commercial brokerage to represent leasing at the building.

SJS Commercial Real Estate is looking at developing additional property to within TRIC. Its first project will be developed to silver standards established by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program of the U.S. Green Building Council.

The new Gateway Commerce Center is just one of many recent developments at TRIC, Gilman says. Movement includes:

The 400,000-square-foot building on Waltham Way that formerly housed Royal Sierra Extrusion, which left the region in 2009, is in escrow with a major manufacturer.

Mars’ pet food division is expanding and taking an 255,000 square feet.

The investment firm Ardagh Group purchased 380,000 square feet on Waltham Way and is relocating companies into the space.

1-800-Flowers downsized from 150,000 square feet into 70,000 square feet on USA Parkway instead of leaving the area completely.

GSI Commerce has a permit in to expand its footprint by 300,000 square feet.

Battle Born Munitions, which imports ammunition from countries throughout the world, leased 10,000 square feet and added five jobs.

Sword International took 2,000 square feet and added five new jobs.

“It is going to be a busy future,” Gilman says.