"They were leased up before the floors were poured," Jeff McKay, director, Greater Statesville Development Corporation, tells Globest.Com.
"The ongoing industrial building we have is almost entirely committed and there's really not a lot of spec building," he says. "We hope to change that."
Industrial leasing rates in the Statesville area are attractive. They are $1.75 per sf to $4.25 per sf. Land prices are also a magnet. Prices range from $15,000 for basic one-acre plots (34 cents per sf) to $50,000 an acre ($1.15 per sf) for tracts along some of the local highways.
The area is actively seeking speculative builders because of perceived demand in that area, McKay tells GlobeSt.com.
Statesville, with a population at the last census of 23,000, has become known as one of the top locations for new and expanding industries in the U.S.
Another North Carolina small town, nearby Mooresville, is also a hot development pocket. Located about 15 miles south of Statesville, Mooresville recently attracted a planned 1,000-employee corporate center for Lowe's Cos. Inc., the home improvement retailer. The county location beat out Charlotte and Raleigh, Chicago and Atlanta.
"That's a separate economic development area, but we think it also calls developers' attention to our own area," McKay tells GlobeSt.com.
Statesville is located at a major interaction, I-77 and I-40. Its location is also only an hour from the Charlotte-Douglas Airport and Piedmont International Airport at the Triad.
"We're one of the few cities that has north, south, east and west access," McKay says. Low property taxes are another attraction. Class A office has so far shunned Statesville, but McKay thinks that could also change.
"It may be because up until recently, we were seen as somewhat removed from Charlotte. Developers were looking more at the downtown area," he says.
Interest is also growing in retail sites, McKay says. But he expects the strongest future development to continue in distribution and industrial sites.
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