Polk industrial market surging

Industrial space in Polk County is expanding significantly as a result of several major build-to-suit and speculative developments that have recently come on line, according to a new report.

Commercial real estate brokerage CBRE Inc. says the county had a “massive quarter for deliveries” in the three-month period ended Sept. 30, the result of new projects for Wal-Mart Stores Inc. in Davenport and five spec buildings in the Park 27 Distribution Center and the Four Corners Business Park, among other projects.

As a result, total vacancy dropped to 7.4% at the end of the quarter, CBRE notes, on the back of a 215,304-square-foot lease by HD Supplies and others.

The submarket's health has prompted investment in existing buildings in the county, too, led recently by Monmouth Real Estate Investment Corp.'s $37.8 million purchase of a FedEx-occupied property at 5000 N. Ridge Trail.

Polk County's 43 million-square-foot industrial market absorbed 2.15 million square feet between June and September, and rental rates edged up to $4.64 per square foot.

That trend is likely to continue in the county as some 4.5 million square feet of new industrial space is currently under construction, according to CBRE.