By Meghan Hall
Chicago-based Bridge Development Partners has sold off a Sumner, Wash., industrial property where it had been working to build a new industrial building called Bridge Point Sumner 60. The 2.29-acre property sold on April 30th for $13.347 million to New York-based PPF for $13.347 million, according to Pierce County property records.
The property is located at 1710 136th Ave. E. According to public property documents, Bridge Development purchased the property in April of 2019 from an entity known as Seven Stars Seattle, Inc. for an even $2 million. Since then, Bridge has been working to redevelop the property into a new, 64,574 square foot industrial building. In April of this year, Bridge announced that Palmer Johnson Power Systems, a machine and equipment distribution company leased 31,859 square feet of the building. The development was slated for delivery this month, and Palmer Johnson’s lease was slated to commence May 1st.
The property is right off of State Route 167 and is within minutes of several Amazon fulfillment centers. Also nearby is JB Hunt Transport Services, Norfil Manufacturing, and Pregis Innovative Packaging.
Bridge Development has been active throughout the Puget Sound region in recent years. Currently, the firm has been involved in 2 million square feet worth of transactions, worth $329 million. Also nearby, Bridge Development is working to complete Bridge Point Sumner South, an 82,591 square foot industrial development slated for completion during the third quarter of this year.
While many sectors, including commercial real estate, have been impacted by current economic conditions and COVID-19, overall the Puget Sound industrial market started off strong in 2020. According to a first quarter report released by CBRE, net absorption totaled 957,837 square feet and direct rental rates increased 4.3 percent year-over-year to $0.79 per square foot.
The Kent Valley submarket, where Bridge Point Sumner 60 is located, held fairly steady during the first quarter. The Port Logistics Group moved into 263,168 square feet at Prologis Landing 167 in Sumner, while Trojan Lithograph began its 89,000 square foot lease at Seattle Gateway Center.
“Looking forward, there is hope that the Kent Valley industrial market will be able to weather the sudden halt in economic activity,” states CBRE. “Multiple tenants signed large leases during the first quarter of 2020, with commencement dates scattered throughout the rest of the year.”
Additionally, the market is experiencing little development. As of CBRE’s report, there was less than one million square feet of industrial under construction in the Kent Valley submarket, which could contribute to future stability, since the market will not be over-supplied as leasing activity is expected to slow in the coming months.
