Watson Land Plans 1M SF on 60 Acres

CHINO, CA-Watson Land Co. plans to develop a master-planned industrial center of 1.3 million sf on 60 acres of former dairy land that Carson-based Watson acquired recently for the project. The new development will be called Watson Commerce Center Chino and will be the latest in a series of projects that the company has either under way or planned in the Inland Empire.Watson plans to develop four of its class A Legacy branded buildings, which are designed to work equally well for manufacturing or distribution companies. The buildings will range from 260,000 sf to 400,000 sf and will be constructed in two phases.Phase I will consist of 700,000 sf and is scheduled to begin construction in the second quarter 2006, with completion planned for the first quarter 2007. The project site spans the northwest and southwest corners of Euclid and Bickmore avenues, near the I-10, I-60 and I-91 freeways.Watson Land has named Colliers Seeley as the leasing agent for the project, with RGA as the architect. Craig Halverson, VP of acquisitions for Watson Land Co., says the development is a key to the company's long-term growth strategy and its expansion in the Inland Empire, where it now has approximately five million sf of industrial space completed or in development.The company's other projects in the Inland Empire include the 2.5-million-sf, 100-acre Watson Commerce Center Redlands and the recently completed 652,174-sf, 32-acre Watson Commerce Center Fontana. Watson Land's other industrial centers are located in the South Bay, near the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach and the Alameda Corridor.The South Bay projects include the Dominguez Technology Center, Watson Industrial Center and Watson Corporate Center, which are in a designated Foreign Trade Zone. With its recent acquisitions the company will own and operate a portfolio of more than 15 million sf of commercial real estate throughout Southern California.