idX Inks 434,490-SF Industrial Lease

BALTIMORE-idX, a St. Louis-based manufacturer of retail fixtures and custom millwork products, has inked a 434,490 square foot lease at Columbia Gateway Commerce Center. The facility, located at 8901 Snowden River Pkwy. in the Columbia submarket, is owned by RREEF. CBRE’s John Wilhide and Mike Roden represented idX and CBRE’s Ed Harris represented RREEF in the transaction. CBRE did not return a call to GlobeSt.com in time for publication.

idX is consolidating operations in two separate buildings in Odenton with this move. Built in 1971, this industrial park originally housed GE’s appliance division. Most recently Sears occupied the entire building before it relocated last year.

Industrial space in the Baltimore-Washington Corridor is performing as well as can be expected in a downturn, according to Delta Associates’ figures. Last year net absorption totaled just below the long-term average–specifically, the Corridor absorbed 4.4 million square feet, compared to 6.6 million square feet in 2007.

A new emerging trend, though – and illustrated by this lease — is that Baltimore appears to be matching, if not exceeding absorption in the DC market. According to Delta Associates’ figures, Baltimore absorbed 3.4 million square feet of industrial and flex space in 2008. Washington, by contrast, absorbed roughly one million square feet. Usually the split is 50-50.