Charlotte Class A distribution center changes hands

CHARLOTTE, N.C., January 21, 2020 – JLL Capital Markets announced today that it has closed the $6.83 million sale of CBI Distribution Center, a 60,000-square-foot, Class A distribution facility fully leased to Carolina Business Interiors (CBI) in Charlotte, North Carolina.

JLL marketed the property on behalf of the seller, The Keith Corporation. An investor advised by Zurich Alternative Asset Management, LLC (ZAAM) of New York purchased the asset.

CBI Distribution Center was developed by the seller in 2017 as a build-to-suit for CBI, the Southeast’s premier workplace solutions provider, which uses the facility as its primary distribution and warehousing center for the Southeastern United States. The best-in-class facility features an attractive tilt-up concrete design with a prominent glass line at the building’s main entrance and touts Class A features such as ESFR sprinklers, motion-sensor LED lighting and premium dock-door service packages. In addition to it’s institutional-quality construction, the building can be expanded by an additional 14,000 square feet. Situated at 2817 Westinghouse Boulevard, CBI Distribution Center is in the heart of Charlotte’s Southwest Industrial submarket and within two miles of the interchange of Interstates 77 and 485. This infill location provides access to a network of major thoroughfares, including Interstate 85, the industrial backbone of the Southeastern U.S.

The JLL Capital Markets team representing the seller was led by Senior Managing Director Chris Norvell, Managing Director Pete Pittroff and Director Patrick Nally.

“This transaction is indicative of the healthy market conditions in Charlotte and the strong desire for capital to invest in quality industrial assets,” Pittroff said.

“We are excited to add this modern CBI facility to our national industrial portfolio,” said Roy Rosenbaum, director of Acquisitions, who spearheaded the deal for ZAAM. “Small footprint warehouses in southwest Charlotte are highly desirable but very cost-prohibitive to duplicate due to rising development costs and a lack of available land in the submarket.”

“We invest in core and core-plus assets in 20 U.S. markets, and, while most assets we acquire are valued between $25 million and $100 million, we also have capital sources that execute exclusively in the $7 million to $20 million range,” added Sean Bannon, managing director and Head of U.S. Real Estate for ZAAM. “This builds diversification for smaller portfolios and gives sellers of these assets an institutional exit where the buyer pool is typically private. CBI is a perfect example of that.”

JLL Capital Markets is a full-service global provider of capital solutions for real estate investors and occupiers. The firm's in-depth local market and global investor knowledge delivers the best-in-class solutions for clients — whether investment advisory, debt placement, equity placement or a recapitalization. The firm has more than 3,700 Capital Markets specialists worldwide with offices in nearly 50 countries.

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ZAAM runs a national core and core-plus acquisition program out of New York which targets office, retail, industrial and multi-family properties and has directly acquired approximately $2 billion of assets since 2013. ZAAM also manages non-core, value-added assets aggregating just under $1 billion. ZAAM recently raised approximately $400 million of international equity for investment in a core and core plus program in a new open-ended fund, and continues to add to its portfolio under management, which spans across 26 states aggregating more than 15 million square feet of commercial real estate space and more than 1,400 multifamily units.