DP Begins 811,200-SF Facility on Spec

CARLISLE, PA-DP Partners has broken ground for an 811,200-sf distribution center at 1301 Distribution Drive in the company's 246-acre LogistiCenter at Carlisle. Reno, NV-based DP is constructing the facility on spec and anticipates completion in the second quarter of 2007.

The east and west ends of the building are designed with non-load-bearing walls in order to allow for expansion at both ends to take full-building size to nearly 1.4 million sf. Michael Alderman, director of leasing, says, "we're calling this our 'SuperCube' spec, because of its built-in flexibility to accommodate a variety of identified requirements for single or multiple tenants." It can accommodate tenants requiring as little as 203,000 sf.

Alderman declines to disclose the projected construction cost, but says, "costs continue to increase at a substantial rate. We think demand in this market is sufficient to offset the rising costs based on our experience with other properties here. We've recently renewed leases at Central Pennsylvania properties at significantly increased rates." He tells GlobeSt.com current rates for distribution space is up between 8% and 10% from a year ago. The asking prelease rental rate for the new facility is $4.40 per sf.

Much of DP's confidence in demand comes from the 100% lease-up of its first, 806,474-sf spec facility at 1501 Distribution Dr., which was completed in 2004. A second, 550,184-sf multi-tenant spec building, completed in fourth quarter 2005, is 54% leased.

LogistiCenter at Carlisle has municipal approvals for up to four million sf, and all significant infrastructure improvements are complete. It can accommodate up to seven buildings, ranging from 231,000 sf to 1.4 million sf. Its location within a Foreign Trade Zone offers savings on international cargo shipments and manufacturing and distribution operations.