DALLAS – Chicago-based National Container Group LLC has leased the 120,960-sf Intermodal Business Center in southern Dallas County, making a 10-year commitment for the entire class A project to house its expanding manufacturing operations in Texas.
The expansion is expected to be up and running in Q1 at 1704 S. Interstate 45 in Hutchins. Construction planning is underway to reconfigure the interior for National Container's needs, including offices.
The single-story structure was completed in 2017 on an 8.6-acre tract adjacent to the interstate's frontage road. The project boasts 32-foot clear height, ESFR sprinkler system and 38 dock doors.
"We had very good activity on the project. It was the right building in the right location at the right time," says Michael T. Grant, senior vice president and managing partner of Dallas-based Bradford Commercial Real Estate Services. He and Susan Singer, executive vice president, represented the landlord, Intermodal Warehouse Partners.
Jean Russo of Cushman & Wakefield of Texas, working with brokers in the firm’s Atlanta office, represented National Container. The Cushman & Wakefield team focused its site search on southern Dallas County. Amid negotiations, the submarket posted the highest cumulative increase in occupancy in the metroplex, with South Dallas' net absorption ringing up 2.6 million sf in the third quarter.
Intermodal Business Center stood out from its competitors because it's a shallow-bay design instead of big-box warehouse, a more common find in the South Dallas industrial corridor. Its size, location and easily-divisible first-generation space added to its ability to secure the win.
"But, I think the dealmaker may have been its stand-alone feature and heavy electrical power, which were particularly attractive to National Container," Grant says.