New industrial project takes shape in Hicksville *
After a lengthy approvals process, a project to create a new industrial building in Hicksville is set to begin.
The plan for a 43,000-square-foot industrial building on about 3 acres of mostly vacant land at 400 West John St. first ground-up development for Jericho-based Sanders Equities.
Originally pitched for residential condominiums by the site’s previous owner, who had already gotten approvals fro Town of Oyster Bay for the project, Sanders Equities purchased the property in 2015. The company owns more th million square feet of mostly industrial space on Long Island, about 100,000 square feet of which is on West John near its new development site.
Sanders decided an industrial use made the most sense for the property, especially in light of the area’s tight indu market, where a dearth of supply and increasing demand have combined to create a need for new modern facilitie
“We’re creating something that addresses today’s operational needs and for the future,” said Jordan Sanders, a co principal and son of its founder Art Sanders.
The new building will have ceiling heights of at least 30 feet and no columns for maximum flexibility. It was design the company’s in-house architecture team of Ted Pupilla and Nick Ernst.
Al Centrella Jr., Sanders’ in-house leasing director, is currently in discussions with prospective tenants. He said the building can be leased by a single tenant or multiple tenants. Asking rent for 400 West John will range between $ $19 per square foot. The company plans to start construction on the building this summer and expects it to be fin around the end of the year.
The Sanders project will be the second new industrial building in the neighborhood. Just a couple of blocks away, Rutherford, N.J.-based Lincoln Equities Group is planning to build a 195,000-square-foot warehouse and distributio facility on a 9-acre site on Duffy Ave. The Lincoln Equities project is scheduled to be completed in the second qua 2019.
There should be strong demand for both new projects, as Long Island’s industrial market continues to be ithehott commercial real estate sector. The industrial vacancy rate in the first quarter of the year dropped to 3.1 percent o Island and an even lower 2.9 percent in Nassau County, according to a report from Colliers International. The ave rental rate for Long Island industrial properties in Q1 was $11.36 per square foot, a whopping 9.2 percent rise fro previous quarter, while the average rent in Nassau hit $12.01 per square foot.
Art Sanders founded Sanders Equities in 1999 after serving as president of Spiegel Associates for 16 years. His so Jordan, a former analyst for institutional and private equity real estate investors, joined the firm in 2012. Since the company has focused on updating its portfolio, which is about 80 percent industrial and 20 percent retail and abou percent occupied.
“We’re trying to make a shift into properties that are more current,” Art Sanders said.
Sanders also owns the 5,000-square-foot shopping center next to the Hicksville project site, which it may eventua redevelop as well. The company is also working on another new ground-up industrial building of about 125,000 sq feet in central Nassau that still needs to get through the approvals process.
“We have confidence in this market,” Jordan Sanders said.
His dad echoed that sentiment and said the Hicksville project represents a new beginning.
“It’s important for us to keep growing,” says Art Sanders. “We’re taking a very long-term view.”