ATLANTA—One Denver company is tapping into the Atlanta industrial real estate heat. The Pauls Corporation, which acquires, develops, owns, manages, and markets commercial real estate properties in the US and Canada, just snapped up five industrial sites.

The industrial assets span 92 acres in the Greenwood Industrial Park, McDonough, GA. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Brett Chambless of Lee & Associates represented Pauls in the site acquisition. Lee will handle the leasing and marketing of the sites and buildings with a leasing team of Chambless and Michael Sutter.

"The industrial market demand for 2015 is still outpacing the supply in Atlanta," Chambless says. "The vacancy rate in the third quarter of 2015 for industrial product in the metro market dropped to its lowest rate in 10 years. The Pauls' project represents an exceptional opportunity to develop facilities that are in short supply, particularly on Atlanta's south side."

Development plans for the property, which is located off Interstate 75 and GA Highway 155 on the southeast side of Atlanta, include construction of five distribution facilities totaling 1.2 million square feet. The assets will range in size from 148,000 to 393,000 square feet.

Four of the five sites are cleared and rough graded which will reduce the construction time for completion of the projects. The first phase of the project will be two cross-dock facilities—266,000 square feet and 210,000 square feet—featuring tilt-up concrete construction; 32' ceiling heights; and excellent truck trailer parking. Projected delivery of the first two speculative industrial buildings is slated for third quarter of 2016.

"Atlanta's industrial market has two primary drivers—transportation and population," Todd Barton, first vice president of CBRE Industrial Properties, tells GlobeSt.com. "Our transportation network—HJ Intl Airport, 5 interstates in GA, 2 class 1 railroads with intermodal facilities, Port of Savannah—makes us the clear hub of the southeast for regional distribution. Atlanta's population base, now over 5.7 million, is a huge driver of the industrial base. As our population continues to grow get, our industrial base will respond accordingly."