Great American will leave its 20,000-sf space at 7500 NW 25th St. in Miami and 7,000 sf at a third-party logistics space in Reno to quadruple its square footage at the DP Partners-developed LogistiPort. "We're accommodating for future growth," Jose Palma, technology manager and project manager for Great American's move, tells GlobeSt.com. The business is expected to move in this November after tenant improvements are completed.

Coincidentally, the company will be sharing the 365,000-sf warehouse at LogistiPort with another distributor that has moved from the Miami market—Dole Packaged Foods LLC. As reported by GlobeSt.com, Dole signed for 166,000 sf within the same building in late June to serve as a distribution center for packaged fresh fruit and vegetables, replacing a similar facility in Miami.

"Being in Miami, you lose a day in transit time getting out of Florida," says Palma. "Savannah is a more central location for shipping, the price per sf is about a third and the economic development authority has a good infrastructure that helps businesses move here," he adds.

LogistiPort's location, five miles from the Port of Savannah and less than ten miles from the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport, also drew both tenants to the space. John Atwell, chief operating officer for Reno-based DP Partners, says the building is now 83% occupied while the project's second building, a 649,000-sf warehouse, is still vacant. Atwell says DP Partners is looking to lease that space to one or two large users, with rental rates in the low $4-per-sf range. "I think it's extremely positive to have one building very close to full three months after it was completed," he says, confident that the growing port will continue to draw distributors to the area.

CresaPartners' Goodman says Savannah is a "tenant-friendly" market at the moment. "As an overall condition, there are concessions available to tenants because of new product being delivered to the market at the same time," he says, pointing to the fact that several developers had built on spec in the region.