Joerns Healthcare Takes 100,000 SF at Center

ARLINGTON, TX-Joerns Healthcare LLC has signed a lease for 100,000 square feet here at a 250,000-square-foot facility at 2100 Design Rd. Ridge Property Trust, a REIT that owns the building, says it has seen increased industrial deal velocity in the past few quarters in the Dallas area.

Joerns, a manufacturer of health care furnishings and equipment, will use its space for distribution. The park has immediate access to Interstate 20 and State Highway 360. Blake Anderson with Grubb & Ellis represented the tenant and Trey Frike and Reid Bassinger with Lee & Associates represented Ridge.

The REIT also recently signed a lease expansion for IDQ Holdings, a maker of automotive air conditioning products, at a 254,000-square-foot facility at 2901 W. Kingsley Rd. in Garland, TX. The company is expanding by 66,000 square feet to fully occupy the building.

Kent Newsom, VP with Ridge, tells GlobeSt.com that Texas, especially the Dallas-Ft. Worth area, is seeing an increase in industrial absorption and expansion. He says the employment activity in Texas is one factor for this success. “The state’s job growth, although not great, is better than the rest of the country and this is leading to more real estate transactions as the job market picks up,” he says.

Unfortunately, it will be a long road back to the gains made in 2007, Newsom says, but this year should bring constant growth. “We're seeing more and more transactions, but there is still some softness in the market. Rents are staying the same and we still have some absorption that needs to take place in order to make the case for construction of new facilities,” he says.