Lincoln Property Co., in partnership with a private real estate fund advised by Crow Holdings Capital, has broken ground on a 594,400 square foot speculative industrial development in Commerce City.
Ascent Commerce Center is a Class A warehouse/distribution center on a 33.2-acre site at Tower Road and East 84th Avenue. The three-building, approximately $55 million development is within the Nexus at DIA master-planned business park.
Building 3 is expected to be delivered in the fourth quarter, while Buildings 1 and 2 are targeted for delivery in first quarter 2021.
Building 1 will be 154,560 sf with a front-park, rear-load design and 32-foot clear height. It will be divisible to 21,840 sf. Building 2 will be a 312,480-sf cross-dock building with 36-foot ceilings and divisibility to 56,000 sf. Building 3 will be a 127,360-sf front-park, rear-load building, 32-foot clear, for tenants as small as 16,640 sf.
All three buildings will be feature dock-high and drive-in loading, ESFR sprinklers and trailer storage/parking.
Mark Dwyer
“Denver’s warehouse market has shown tremendous growth during the past 36 to 48 months, vacancy is near record lows and rents are exceeding previous high marks,” said Mark Dwyer, vice president with LPC. “Ascent Commerce Center provides tenants considerable size flexibility with space divisible from 16,000 square feet to 312,000 square feet and best-in-class construction for peak operational efficiency.
“I think it will be well received because of its flexibility and location,” said Dwyer, who expects the market to be on the road to recovery by the time the first building is delivered.
“We’ve already seen some general interest in the site, and we expect to see very strong activity for industrial uses there,” commented Drew McManus of Cushman & Wakefield, who is co-listing the property for lease with Dwyer, LPC’s Scott Caldwell and Bryan Fry of Cushman & Wakefield.
Ascent Commerce Center is located within metro Denver’s dominant, east industrial corridor. It is less than a 10-minute drive from Denver International Airport and to significant sort hubs for both UPS and FedEx. “Obviously, the airport is a massive driver of the economy, and so we like the proximity,” Dwyer commented.
The development is suited to a variety of e-commerce, distribution, and logistics users. The property will offer tenants easy access workforce, public transportation options and major highways. “As it gets more congested centrally, people are liking the idea of using E-470, I-76 and 225,” Dwyer commented.
“The Denver warehouse, entertainment, and housing markets are gravitating toward Denver International Airport,” he said. “Ascent allows users access to a variety of traffic routes, as well as access to the airport while capturing an exceptional volume of employees.”
Alliance Architecture is the architect on the development, and Brinkmann Constructors is the general contractor.
With LPC’s $5.4 million acquisition of the Ascent Commerce Center site last year, Nexus at DIA’s first phase, which consists of 223 acres, is nearly completed. McLane Foods and GE Appliances are among users with large distribution facilities within the park, which has benefitted from expansion of Tower Road to four lanes, including a new on ramp from Peña Boulevard, as well as “the overall growth of the I-70 corridor and lack of quality industrial land for sale,” McManus said.
