The deal represents a significant growth in CRA's business and will enable the company to consolidate operations from several other facilities including ones in Holbrook, Needham and Franklin, MA. This new facility will serve as CRA's Northeastern US beverage processing operations.

The building was originally built for Paperama and most recently was used as a distribution facility for Shaw's Supermarkets. CRA will occupy the entire building immediately and intends to use the property for the processing and re-use of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage containers as well as the processing of unsold and outdated beverages. David Mitchell and Jim Rader of Rader Properties conducted the property search on behalf of CRA and were the sole brokers involved in this transaction.

According to Mitchell, a partner at Rader, the building takes up about half the property and CRA will use the additional acres for outside storage. He tells GlobeSt.com that the company also plans to put in a rail line to enable vehicles to drive onto the property.

Tim Cusson, regional manager for CRA, notes that the company conducted an "exhaustive search" for a site south of Boston. He says that this location was chosen because of its proximity to Route 495, its ability to offer rail service and its room for expansion and long-term growth.

Mitchell notes that the industrial market in this area has not been hit as hard as the office market. But while the vacancy rates in the industrial market remain low and rates have basically stabilized, demand has slowed down.

"Demand for warehouse space is not where it was," says Mitchell, but he adds there are still not a lot of "decent, large properties on the market. There is activity and the requirements are out there." Mitchell points out that vacancies in this market tend to be older buildings with low ceilings that are hard to lease in any market. "Well-located facilities with modern features will get leased up," he says.

According to Spaulding & Slye Colliers statistics for the fourth quarter of 2002, the availability for industrial space in the suburbs was at 16.2% as compared with 27.7% for office space. The office market in the area had a negative absorption rate of 52,207 sf while the industrial market had a positive absorption rate of 121,495 sf.

Mitchell would not disclose the rate for this deal but he says that the average rate for this type of space is between $5.50 to $6 per sf. Two years ago, similar space was going for between $6 to $6.50 per sf.