While there are certainly no promises that more neighbors will magically appear at the Cheney Industrial and Commerce Park in the immediate future, there are indicators it could.
That’s how commercial realtor Dan Cantu sees the future of the property west of the city on State Route 904 at Fred Johns Way.
“Land is usually the toughest to market as compared to an existing building,” Cantu said.
When someone is looking to lease a building or own a building, buying land and building new is the last resort. “It’s always going to be the most expensive route,” Cantu said when it comes to filling some of the currently vacant 32 lots that make up the city-owned property.
The good news is that with the economy doing much better, the industrial market has been getting really tight, Cantu said.
Vacancies for this type of property sit at a mere three percent and going down. Spokane County has close to 29 million square feet of property specific to industrial needs. And one of the biggest needs for the space came from marijuana producer-processors as evident by Pure Joy Farms being one of the tenants in the park.
That’s a completely separate market from commercial and retail. The many different strip mall locations with notable vacancies, “Is a totally different product,” Cantu added, with vacancies very notable.
There is a lot of activity with people looking for buildings to lease and buy, Cantu said. “There are just not a lot of choices.”
The problem is that even though the economy has been good and there is a lot of activity, when the last recession hit the rents went stagnant.
“We’re still getting the same rents we got 10 years ago,” Cantu said. “On the flip side, construction costs continued to go up.”
It has not made sense for a landlord to speculate and build new to attract tenants because it does not pencil out, he explained.
“So we’re waiting for that to happen, and it’s beginning to happen, as the market gets tight and tight and tight,” Cantu said. “Now it’s going to make sense for developers to start building.”
To build, a business is going to need land, and that’s where the Cheney property might be popular. “We’re just at the cusp of that,” Cantu said.
There was a time when the idea was floated for the city to at least partner with a developer and put up a spec building.
“It just has never happened,” Cantu said. The city being landlords is probably not the best use of tax dollars, he suggested.
City Hall will, however, work with any prospective developer to make sure the permitting and any other processes flow smoothly.” The city will do everything in their power to make it as easy as possible,” Cantu said.
More info
Cheney Industrial & Commerce Park
Cantu Commercial Properties
http://www.cantucommercial.com
Dan Cantu
(509) 993-9939
Paul Delaney can be reached at [email protected].
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