Yaskawa Leases Most of New Spec Industrial

The new tenant has a headquarters in Waukegan, IL, directly south on Interstate 94 from Oakwood, says Mike Yungerman, VP of development for Opus North. "They were in New Berlin, WI, and that's pretty close," he says. His company is seeking another tenant for the remaining space, he says. "We're asking $5.25 per square foot, net, with 5% build-out," Yungerman says. The building was finished in 2007.

The business center also includes a 125,000-square-foot build-build-to-suit facility, fully leased by Corporate Express, as well as more room for development. "We have 40 acres available, on the market for sale, though we'd prefer to do a development for build-to-suit. We're certainly not going to be doing another spec building in this climate," Yungerman tells GlobeSt.com.

He says the area saw decreased activity last year, but has had business pick up this year. The Kenosha market, renowned for its companies that want to be close to the Chicago area but want to pay cheaper taxes and utilities across the Wisconsin border, is creeping north into the suburban Milwaukee market. "This is the first market south," Yungerman says. "Of the four markets that are tracked in Milwaukee, the Oak Creek/Franklin area has seen the most growth."

The city has had other activity recently. The US Postal Service recently announced it will locate into a new 858,000-square-foot new facility here for a processing center, and First Industrial is leasing up its 184,000-square-foot distribution park, just south of Oakwood.