REDA and Clarion Partners LLC Complete 1.245-Million-Square-Foot Lease with Uline, Inc.

REDA and Clarion Partners LLC Complete 1.245-Million-Square-Foot Lease with Uline, Inc.

April 13, 2020, Ontario, CA – REDA, a Southern California-based opportunistic real estate investment and development firm, and Clarion Partners, LLC, have announced completion of a 1,245,000-square-foot lease with Uline, Inc. at Ontario Ranch Logistics Center located at 4815 South Hellman Ave. in Ontario. Uline, a family-owned business, is the leading distributor of shipping, industrial and packaging materials to businesses throughout North America.

The lease represents a consolidation of several Uline locations throughout the Inland Empire. Uline was represented by CBRE’s Dave Desper and Joey Sugar. Spec construction on the new building that will house Uline was initiated in January 2020. Vertical construction will commence in July with completion set for September 2021. REDA also plans to begin spec construction on a 115,000-square-foot building in the business park.

Uline is the second tenant announced for Ontario Ranch Logistics Center. In mid-2019, REDA signed Kimberly Clark to the entire 1,180,908 square feet of space in Building 1. Kimberly Clark is an American multinational personal care corporation that produces mostly paper-based consumer products. The corporation moved into the now-completed industrial building as of March 2020.

“The lease activity with such strong firms as Uline and Kimberly Clark further reinforces the dominance of the Inland Empire market, especially as it relates to e-commerce. We had significant interest in this building and overall see that level of interest continuing for buildings of this size,” said REDA Co-Founder and Principal Jason Krotts. “Even when considering the economic impact of COVID-19, economists have continued to assert that e-commerce will remain a strong real estate segment. Moreover there is already discussion of a growing interest in reshoring manufacturing operations to the U.S. which would also benefit industrial development in this market.”

Ontario Ranch Logistics Center is a 124-acre multi-phase industrial development. The first phase of the project, including Building 1, broke ground in January 2019. The second phase includes Building 2, now home to Uline. Upon completion the entire logistics campus will encompass 2.6 million square feet of state-of- the-art industrial space in six buildings. The next phase of speculative development of the Ontario Ranch Business Park, a 115,000-square-foot building, is slated for early 2021. Ontario Ranch Business Park features state-of-the-art buildings that include ESFR sprinkler systems, 32’–40’ minimum clear heights, LED warehouse lighting and concrete truck courts greater than 180 feet in a cross-dock configuration, perfect for e-commerce of high velocity distribution. Ontario Ranch Logistics Center is a development by REDA and Clarion Partners, LLC. All told, the partnership is in planning stages of futures phases of development in the immediate area totaling in excess of 6 million square feet.

“We are pleased that Uline has chosen to invest even further in the City of Ontario,” said Ontario Mayor Paul Leon. Leon added, ”The consolidation of Uline’s various locations to Ontario speaks to the strong partnership between their company and the City—something we are very proud of at City Hall.”

To underscore current market dynamics, CBRE recently reported that the impact of COVID-19 is likely to accelerate the expansion of e-commerce activity as consumers reconsider visiting retail stores given social distancing guidelines. The report further notes that while it is too early to see the impact in local real estate markets increased demand for online retailers is likely to drive further absorption throughout the GLA/OC/IE region. Already, many prominent e-commerce companies are operating at a greater capacity than peak holiday season. Several major e-tailers have announced plans to expand their workforce, and the most prominent e-commerce brand is looking to hire an additional 100,000 workers nationwide.