Spec Building Projects Underscore Park’s Appeal

“The industrial market in New Albany continues to attract top brands looking for premier logistics and distribution space. We are thrilled that Takeya USA chose this building in New Albany.”

                                                                                    Phil Rasey, Vice President, VanTrust 

New Albany International Business Park continues to attract new speculative building projects to meet growing market demand which, according to a recent trend report, grew by 61 percent from 2020 to 2021 in the region. VanTrust’s footprint in the park will expand to 1.4 million square feet when its latest projects are completed. Al Neyer Re, LLC has announced plans to build a 542,650-square-foot speculative building at an estimated cost of $40 million. Scannell Properties is planning a $30 million investment in a 355,000-square-foot office building. READ MORE

New to New Albany, Tenby Partners and Oakridge Development have formed a joint venture to invest $6.75 million to develop a 130,000-square-foot speculative industrial facility here. According to a JLL trend report, industrial demand in the Columbus region grew by 60.8 percent between 2020 and 2021. That increase is the result of the city’s central location, within an eight-hour drive of 44 percent of the United States, strong infrastructure, intermodal facilities and airports and strong workforce, JLL reported. New Albany has seen strong, steady demand for space from both existing companies seeking to expand as well as new companies seeking to build their presence here.

After completing construction and leasing of its first two properties, Northeast 302 and Innovation I in the business park, VanTrust Real Estate, LLC recently announced the completion of Innovation II ahead of schedule. The 234,000-square-foot building has been fully leased to Rieke, part of TriMas’ Packaging group, a designer and manufacturer of highly engineered closure and dispensing systems for boutique manufacturers and the world’s top consumer brands. 

“As we continue to develop new and innovative packaging solutions, we recognize that expansion requires a good location in a business-friendly community, said Ed Allen, corporate manufacturing director of Rieke.  “We’ve found that in the New Albany Beauty Park.”

VanTrust’s first New Albany project, Northeast 302, is a 303,000-square-foot mail order pharmacy and distribution center that houses Hims & Hers, a fast-growing digital health and wellness company that provides online access to board-certified physicians, prescription drugs and over-the-counter medications. Innovation I was leased to Axium, a leading manufacturer of plastic bottles, caps and closures which has a large presence in the Personal Care and Beauty Campus, and Voyant Beauty, a contract manufacturer for beauty and personal care brands. VanTrust recently broke ground on New Albany 315. The developer signed Takeya USA for 120,369 square feet of the 315,385-square-foot building before a shovel touched the dirt. The California-based active fitness brand specializes in insulated water bottles and hydration solutions. 

Tenby Partners and Oakridge Development’s facility at 9360 Innovation Campus Way is designed to appeal to smaller tenants seeking opportunities to expand and is expected to create 100 jobs. Scannell Properties estimates its new project will create between 200 to 400 jobs.