Newmark Grubb tapped to lease Tampa Regional spec building

Newmark Grubb Knight Frank's Tampa office has been tapped to lease a new speculative industrial building being developed in the Interstate 4 corridor.

Duke Realty's 337,447-square-foot Tampa Regional Industrial Park project is slated for delivery next July. In all, the Indianapolis-based company is planning a trio of industrial buildings in the 117-acre park, totaling 1.2 million square feet.

“This is going to be the best industrial value in the state of Florida, without a doubt,” says Newmark Grubb Senior Managing Director Rick Narkiewicz, who together with the firm's Bobby Sampson will lease the Tampa Regional property.

“The market is extremely tight and the deal velocity has been constant over the past year.”

The project marks the latest in a series of spec buildings underway in response to surging demand and scant vacancy in the I-4 corridor, which is prized by distributors for its central location and ability to reach 18 million consumers within 24 hours by truck.

Duke Realty's building marks the largest spec industrial project to come out of the ground around Tampa since 2007, and the only one with a 32-foot clear ceiling height ever developed in that area.

Narkiewicz says rents in the building will run about $4.25 per square foot on a triple net basis. Comparable space in Lakeland, a major distribution hub for Publix Super Markets, Rooms-To-Go, Wal-Mart Stores, Amazon and others, is quoted at $5.25 per square foot, he says.

Duke Realty's park is roughly 1.5 miles from Interstate 75 and 15 miles south of Interstate 4. The new building will also feature storage for 101 trailers; 264 parking spaces; an ESFR sprinkler system; and access to CSX rail.

“It's going to be state of the art, with all the features that we think tenants today are looking for,” says Tim Perry, Duke Realty's vice president of leasing. “We're hoping we're in the right place at the right time.”