CINCINNATI—The metro area around Cincinnati has one of the hottest industrial markets in the US. Tenants are clamoring for space, and developers have found it possible to quickly lease up new projects. The Opus Group, for example, have just completed the lease up of its recently built space at Port Union Commerce Park. O'Gara-Hess & Eisenhardt Armoring Co. LLC and ProFill Fulfillment leased the final two spaces at the 807,000 square foot development.

“If we had had another one million square feet, we probably could have leased it,” Kevan O'Connor, senior manager, real estate development, Opus Development Co., LLC. In the Cincinnati area, “you can can't build it fast enough.”

Founders Properties, LLC owns the full industrial park, which spans the cities of Fairfield, OH, and West Chester, OH.

As reported in GlobeSt.com, the US industrial market set records for activity in the first quarter, and Cincinnati was one of the stand out regions. According to a market report from Cushman & Wakefield, the metro area saw about four million square feet of absorption, almost as much as CA's Inland Empire and beating Chicago by a wide margin. By comparison, Cincinnati's cumulative net absorption was five million square feet for all of 2016.

Greater Cincinnati has now experienced 23 consecutive quarters of positive net absorption. The vacancy rate fell by nearly 125 bps from 4.2% at the end of the first quarter of 2016, and is now under 3% market-wide for the first time in over 15 years.

Opus' new park attracted a diverse set of tenants, O'Conner adds, a reflection of the region's diverse economy. “We have every type of user, from e-commerce to light manufacturing and assembly, an auto parts distributor, and a defense contractor.”

Cincinnati has become such a popular destination due to its central location, he says. An increasing number of firms have found it admirably suited for regional distribution centers.

And its reputation as a distribution market seems likely to grow. Amazon has decided to create a $1.4 billion hub at the Cincinnati/Northern KY airport, part of a larger move to lessen its dependence on UPS and FedEx.

“That's a game changer,” says O'Conner.

Opus Design Build, LLC was the design-builder and Opus AE Group, LLC was the architect and structural engineer of record. Mike Lowe and Doug Whitten of CBRE managed the listing in the leasing of the space.

Founders Properties, LLC owns the full industrial park, which spans the cities of Fairfield, OH, and West Chester, OH.

Cincinnati has become such a popular destination due to its central location, he says. An increasing number of firms have found it admirably suited for regional distribution centers.

“That's a game changer,” says O'Conner.

Instant Insights /

Cincinnati Becoming Popular with Industrial Users

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