Update 2/26/20 – Vineland Ventures received approval last week to convert the former ShopRite retail store in Vineland, N.J., to indoor self-storage. The developer agreed to several concessions, such as repairing the surrounding parking lot. Once complete, the facility will contain 600 units.
11/22/19 – The Freehold, N.J., Township Planning Board last week unanimously approved the variance request from Wasatch to build a new facility on Gibson Place. The developer will present a site plan to the board next year, according to Jennifer Krimko, an attorney with its law firm, Ansell Grimm & Aaron.
Alterations were made to the original plan after board members expressed concerns about the types of vehicles that would be stored at the property. Krimko provided a list during the Nov. 14 meeting and noted that all vehicles must be operational and registered. In addition, the project has been shifted 10 feet to the northeast to be farther from nearby homes. A larger scenic corridor has also been added where the parcel borders a local school and the residential neighborhood on Oakley Drive, according to David Boesch, executive vice president of Nelson Engineering Associates.
10/23/19 – The global self-storage development pipeline continues to be extremely dynamic. Inside Self-Storage regularly covers new projects being planned and approved as well as zoning and other municipal issues. Following is more activity taking place in October 2019.
Community Self Storage is developing a facility in Katy, Texas. The property at 23155 Morton Ranch Road will offer climate control, individually alarmed units and wine storage. It’s expected to open in the spring. The company operates seven locations in the Houston metropolitan market.
CubeSmart, a publicly traded REIT and management company, opened a new location in Hillside, N.J. The six-story facility at 591 N. Union Ave. comprises 145,800 square feet, including a 1,200-square-foot management office. ARCO/Murray Design Build provided construction services, with Tyler Jones as the project manager and David Rogers serving as project superintendent. Based in Dallas, the firm is a national general contractor with more than 25 years of experience.
CubeSmart is also building a new facility in Tampa, Fla. The multi-story structure on Gandy Boulevard is near the Lee Roy Selmon Expressway. The REIT owns or manages 1,165 self-storage facilities across the United States. Its operating portfolio comprises 78.8 million square feet.
REIT Extra Space Storage is opening a facility in Ridgefield, N.J, on Nov. 2 and will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony that day. The $13.6 million building at 625 Grand Ave. will offer 1,200 units and drive-in loading bays. Headquartered in Salt Lake City, the company owns or operates 1,752 self-storage properties nationwide and in Puerto Rico. Its properties comprise approximately 1.2 million units and 134 million square feet of rentable space.
Four Seasons Self Storage opened in Arnprior, Ontario, Canada. The facility at 386 Madawaska Blvd. comprises 76 units while it undergoes further development. Upcoming projects include parking-lot paving and the installation of fencing and gate access, which are expected to be complete in the spring, according to Adam Rueckwald, operations manager. The management office is in Four Seasons Car Wash, which fronts the self-storage property.
A self-storage development in Clarence, N.Y., would need “significant alterations to the architecture and exterior design” before town officials would consider it. Charles Kelkenberg presented his plans to the town board on Oct. 9 for the 8-acre property on the northeast corner of Goodrich and County Roads. The developer worked with an executive committee to “provide a look that would be more appealing aesthetically from the street view,” one including stone, metal roofs and towering elements, according to Mike Berger, an architect with Sutton Architecture, the company representing the developer. Board supervisor Patrick Casilio likened the design to “army barracks” while another member, Paul Shear, said the current design doesn’t work for the area, particularly on the side that faces Goodrich Road. The design also didn’t support a mixed-use element, board members said. Berger noted the building features a condition space that could be used for retail. However, board members agreed the current layout couldn’t accommodate retail customers or parking. The project was referred to the planning board.
Lake Geneva Self Storage opened in Lake Geneva, Wis., this month. The facility at 901 Maxwell St. comprises interior, climate-controlled units. It’s owned by Joe Devorkin and Kurt Hintz, who’ll operate his company, Mac’s Moving and Storage, at the facility.
Lampe Management Co., which operates the Ample Storage portfolio, is developing a new self-storage facility along Sunset Avenue in Rocky Mount, N.C. The facility will be built on a 12-acre site between Halifax Road and Mayfair Drive. It’ll comprise eight buildings built in two phases. Lampe received preliminary approval from planners last December. Based in Smithfield, N.C., the company develops and operates more than 60 self-storage facilities in Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia.
Mr. Storage, which operates five facilities in Iowa, has opened a new location in Huxley. The facility at 525 S. Main Ave. is in the city’s industrial park. In addition to traditional storage units, it contains large commercial bays with 14-foot doors and power hook-ups. Mr. Storage also operates facilities in Ames, Boone, Granger and Madrid, Iowa. It’s owned by Mark DeYoung, Chris Gardner and Grant Tjernagel.
Shurgard Self Storage Europe SARL, the European affiliate of U.S.-based real estate investment trust Public Storage Inc., received approval to develop a new facility in the Reinickendorf borough of Berlin. The property will comprise more than 5,000 square meters in nearly 1,000 units. Construction will begin before year-end and is expected to be complete by next fall. Shurgard operates 231 self-storage facilities comprising 1.2 million net rentable square meters in Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Sweden and the United Kingdom.
StoneCreek Storage Center opened on Oct. 14 in Ironton, Ohio. The five-building facility at 89 County Road 181 comprises 62 climate-controlled and 125 drive-up units. It was built on a 6-acre lot at the site of the former Alpha Portland Cement Plant, which had been vacant since 1970. Boat/RV storage will be added to the site next spring.
StorageMart, which operates more than 200 self-storage properties across Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States, intends to add 195 climate-controlled units to a newly acquired facility in Springfield, Mos. Additional upgrades to the former Joey’s Self Storage at 1933 N. Glenstone Ave. will include drive-in loading bays, an elevator and 30 vehicle-storage spaces.
Storage Master, which operates five facilities in Alabama, Florida and Georgia, opened a conversion project in LaGrange, Ga. The two-story facility at 401 S. Greenwood St. contains 250 units. The site is in a qualified opportunity zone, which encourages investments in areas where poverty rates are greater than 20 percent. Owner Chris Averett discovered the building while performing landscaping at the office of his other business, Averett Rentals, which was behind it. Averett sold the office property and moved the business inside the new Storage Master office. Founded more than 35 years ago, Storage Master operates facilities in Dothan, Ala., as well as Columbus, Douglasville, LaGrange and Pace, Fla.
STORExpress Self Storage converted a former bowling alley in Warren, Ohio. The facility at 3390 Youngstown Road contains 400 interior units with drive-in access. An Oct. 19 grand opening was held in conjunction with a community harvest festival that included activities such as pumpkin painting, bobbing for apples, marshmallow roasting and a chili cook-off with cash prizes for winners. Founded in 1998, STORExpress also operates 11 locations in Pittsburgh and Western Pennsylvania. Its portfolio comprises more than 1.3 million net rentable square feet.
U-Haul received approval on a self-storage project in Bristol, Tenn., and broke ground on another in Philadelphia. It also opened a converted property in Rock Island, Ill.
In Bristol, U-Haul received a special-use permit that will allow it to convert a former Kmart into a moving and storage center. The property will comprise 65,000 square feet of storage space in up to 800 units. The retail space has been vacant for three years.
The company also intends to open a 251,643-square-foot moving and self-storage facility in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia. Construction began on Oct. 18 and is expected to be complete in December 2020. JKRP Architects is designing the project.
U-Haul recently opened a converted Kmart in Rock Island, Ill. The company acquired the 84,180-square-foot retail space last December. The facility is operating with about 300 storage units but will ultimately have around 750 spaces for rent.
Vineland Ventures LLC presented plans to the Vineland, N.J., planning board on Oct. 9 to convert a former ShopRite retail store to indoor self-storage. The 75,000-square-foot building at 215 N. Delsea Drive has been empty for more than six years. City officials were receptive to the plan, which includes building another 75,000-square-foot structure on the 8.33-acre lot during the second phase. A dance studio that leases space on the property will remain, according to Richard P. Monteforte, a principal and officer for Vineland. The board unanimously voted to recommend the project to the city council. Vineland has the property under contract pending approval from the city, according to Brian Losuke, the developer’s attorney. The seller is VERC Realty LLC. Vineland was formed to be the development entity for the project by American Self Storage, which operates 1 million square feet of storage in New Jersey under the Storage Box Central brand.
Wasatch Storage Partners LLC, a Utah-based real estate investment firm specializing in self-storage acquisitions and development, is seeking a variance to build a new facility in Freehold Township, N.J. Wasatch representatives presented the conceptual plans for the 13.2-acre undeveloped site on Gibson Place to the planning board on Oct. 3. The project would include 11 storage buildings containing 839 units and 59 vehicle-storage spaces. Board members had concerns about the vehicle storage and asked the developer to further refine what would be permitted. The discussion was continued to Nov. 14. Wasatch operates six facilities in Arizona, Colorado, New York and Tennessee under various brand names. It also has five projects in planning phase and four under construction, plus one expansion underway.
The William Warren Group (WWG), a privately held real estate company that operates the StorQuest Self Storage brand, opened two new facilities in the Portland, Ore., market. The property at 750 N.E. Cornelius Pass Road in Hillsboro is near U.S. Route 26. The site at 12800 S.W. Pacific Highway in Tigard is also newly constructed. Both locations offer climate-controlled units and high-end security features. Founded in 1994 and based in Santa Monica, Calif., WWG acquires, develops and operates more than 165 self-storage facilities in 14 states.
10/11/19 – The global self-storage development pipeline continues to be extremely dynamic. Inside Self-Storage regularly covers new projects being planned and approved as well as zoning and other municipal issues. Following is activity taking place in October 2019.
The joint venture between commercial real estate companies ADEVCO Corp. and Batson-Cook Development Co. (BCDC) will build a pair of three-story, climate-controlled self-storage facilities in Columbus, Ga., and Vestavia Hills, Ala. The Columbus facility will be built on 2.76 acres at 7350 Blackmon Road. It’ll comprise 100,080 square feet in 780 units. Construction is expected to be complete next summer. The Vestavia Hills facility will be developed on 2.57 acres at 2864 Acton Road. It’ll comprise 100,050 square feet in 732 units. It’s scheduled to open in September. Both properties will be operated by real estate investment trust (REIT) and third-party management company Extra Space Storage Inc. and branded under its name. The projects follow the joint venture’s first development in Dunwoody, Ga., announced in March.
All Safe Self Storage opened a new facility in Summerville, S.C. The property at 1080 Orangeburg Road comprises more than 55,000 net rentable square feet in 516 units. It also offers 20- and 40-foot vehicle-storage spaces. Though the facility opened Aug. 8, All Safe will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Nov. 5. Guests will receive complimentary hors d’oeuvres, refreshments and goodie bags. The event will be hosted by Irene Pace, resident manager, and Lou Barnholdt, area manager for Universal Storage Group, an Atlanta-based self-storage operator and third-party management firm that oversees the facility. The Summerville property is the fourth location for All Safe, which is owned by Everett Knight.
U.K. self-storage operator Big Yellow Group PLC, which operates the Big Yellow and Armadillo Self Storage brands, received approval from the planning commission to convert the former Harwoods Jaguar car dealership in Hove, England, to a mixed-use property that’ll include office suites and self-storage. Plans include demolishing the existing buildings on the acre lot at 27 Old Shoreham Road and building a three-story self-storage facility comprising 55,500 square feet of net rentable area, including 4,700 square feet of flexible office space. The company will be required to spend £5,200 toward bus-stop improvements on Old Shoreham Road. Because the site is currently occupied, construction will commence in about a year and is expected to be complete in 2022. Big Yellow Group operates 100 self-storage locations in the United Kingdom, with most concentrated in Greater London and Southeast England. Its total portfolio comprises 5.7 million square feet.
Real estate development firm Bright-Meyers-Sasser Storage 1 LLC (BMS) opened a newly constructed self-storage facility in Canton, Ga. Canton Storage comprises 66,608 rentable square feet in 583 units. The property at 150 Reinhardt College Parkway is near Chattahoochee Technical College, Teasley Middle School and Riverstone Village, a medical-office center. Property-management firm Absolute Storage Management will manage the site. The facility opened on April 29.
Real estate investment firm Flagship Cos. Group purchased 6.44 acres in DeLand, Fla., for $762,500 on which it plans to build a mixed-use project including flex space and self-storage. Plans for the property at the intersection of South Adelle Avenue and South State Road 15A include climate-controlled storage and outdoor vehicle storage. It’ll also contain “maker-style” spaces that consist of five retail areas for lease to local artisans. Flagship has requested the site be annexed from the county by the city so the project can be built under city regulations, a source reported. Once complete, it’ll be managed by Extra Space and branded under its name. The landowners, Norman and Victoria Todd, were represented in the sale by Steve Costa, principal of NAI Realvest | Charles Wayne Commercial. Based in Lake Mary, Fla., Flagship specializes in hotels, master-planned communities, restaurants, self-storage and studio salons. It develops and operates self-storage facilities throughout Florida.
Lighthouse Storage, which operates two self-storage facilities in Indiana, opened its first Kentucky location at 264 Highway 44 W. in Shepherdsville. The company recently held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the opening. Lighthouse is developing a new site in Boonville, Ind., and another in Henderson, Ky. Both are expected to open within a year, according to a press release.
Mini Price Storage, which operates 26 facilities in Virginia, opened a new location at 409 Herberts Lane in Chesapeake, Va. Founded more than 30 years ago, Mini Price serves the communities of Chesapeake, Chesterfield County, Henrico County, Norfolk, Richmond and Virginia Beach.
Northpoint Development, which operates the Beyond Self Storage (BSS) brand, broke ground in September on a new facility in the Oakley neighborhood of Cincinnati. The facility will comprise more than 139,000 square feet in 980 units. It’s being developed on 3.5 acres just west of Oakley Station, a 74-acre mixed-use development. Construction is expected to be complete in September. Affiliate BSS Oakley LLC acquired the property for $2.75 million. BSS operates 15 facilities in nine states.
Oakland Lakes Boulevard LLC, an affiliate of Delray Beach, Fla.-based real estate developer The Pugliese Co., intends to build a self-storage project on a 2.53-acre vacant site in Oakland Park, Fla. The facility at 2203 W. Oakland Park Blvd. would comprise 110,050 square feet in two, three-story buildings and 16 parking spaces. The planning and zoning board was expected to discuss the site’s rezoning and conditional-use applications on Oct. 7. Zoning would have to change from a community business district to commercial-industrial for the plan to move forward. Pugliese acquired the property in 2016 for $660,000.
The discussion about a self-storage project in Frazer Township, Pa., has been continued to Nov. 5 to allow the developers, Sam and Rachel Sack, time to address concerns from township officials and community members. Plans for Frazer Self Storage call for a four-building, 70-unit facility along Peachtree Lane off Butler-Logan Road. Prior to the Oct. 1 meeting, the Sacks were asked to address 25 concerns from township engineer Dan Martone. These included facility lighting, road maintenance, grading and stormwater management, a source reported. Officials also requested time to review the adjusted site plan resented at the October meeting. The planning commission offered tentative approval in September as long as Martone’s concerns were met.
Safeguard Self Storage, which operates 75 facilities throughout the eastern states, met with members of the Seminole Heights neighborhood of Tampa, Fla., to discuss a project residents have petitioned the city to block. Safeguard intends to replace two existing structures at 1101 and 1115 East Hillsborough Ave. with a pair of three-story buildings comprising up to 750 units. Residents are concerned about a potential increase in traffic, facility design, and the addition of another self-storage facility in proximity to other similar businesses. The parties discussed the possibility of Safeguard donating units to neighborhood associations as well as dedicating a portion of the property as community space, according to Stan Lasater, president of the Southeast Seminole Heights Civic Association. The city council was expected to address the operator’s rezoning request during a public hearing on Oct. 10.
Developer Len Shivers received approval from the Lake County Board of County Commissioners to build a self-storage facility in Leadville, Colo., that’ll include outdoor vehicle storage. The facility will be built on the former Mt. Elbert Mobile Home Park at 11567 U.S. Route 24. Once complete, it’ll include 38,700 square feet of storage and 96 gravel-paved vehicle-storage spaces. The Lake County Planning Commission originally recommended in May that the board of commissioners deny Shivers’ application due to concerns about the project’s visual impact on the valley floor. Shivers withdrew the application and resubmitted it with changes, which included a reduction of vehicle-parking spaces by two-thirds and land that would be developed into storage by one-third. Additional changes included the addition of roof pitches to the buildings to block views of the internal structures. Shivers also agreed to add a decorative fence around the facility and meet standards for dark-sky compliance.
Tucson Realty and Trust Co. received zoning approval on Sept. 18 to build a mixed-use project that’ll include executive office suites and self-storage in Oro Valley, a suburb of Tucson, Ariz. Councilmembers Joyce Jones-Ivey, Rhonda Piña, Bill Rodman and Steve Solomon voted in favor of the project, while Mayor Joe Winfield and councilmembers Melanie Barrett and Josh Nicolson opposed it. Plans for the 5.7 acres near North Oracle Road and West Calle Concordia include a 115,000-square-foot, two-story self-storage facility comprising 1,000 units. It’ll also contain 13 executive office suites on both levels. Most of a nearby wash and 48 percent of the parcel’s open space will be preserved. Tucson Realty and Trust CEO Hank Amos and local planning firm The Planning Center expect the structure to cost $13 million, which would create about $500,000 in construction-tax revenue for the town.
Phoenix-based U-Haul International Inc., which operates more than 1,500 self-storage facilities across North America and frequently recycles existing structures for its new locations, converted a former Kmart in Decatur, Ill. The facility at 1155 E. Pershing Road comprises 119,862 square feet in 900 units. The company has offered truck and trailer rentals, moving supplies and towing equipment through a temporary showroom at the property since July 2018. A grand-opening event will be held at the site on Oct. 12. The Kmart closed in 2016.
U-Haul is also converting a former Kmart in Galesburg, Ill., into a moving and self-storage center. The retail space was part of the Sandburg Mall. It comprises 105,909 square feet 7.8 acres at 1150 W. Carl Sandburg Drive. The company has been offering truck rentals, moving supplies and portable-storage services through a temporary showroom since Aug. 20. The self-storage portion of the project is expected to be complete early next year.
In addition, U-Haul received approval from the Bluefield, W.Va., Planning Board on a zoning change that will allow the company to convert a former Kmart at the intersection of Cumberland Road and U.S. Route 460 to a moving and self-storage center. The facility is expected to open with about 250 storage units, with phased plans targeting up to 750 units. Established in 1945 and based in Phoenix, U-Haul’s portfolio of owned and managed properties comprises 60.7 million square feet of storage space.
New Sources:
Cat Country, Former Vineland Shoprite to Become Self-Storage Facility
Central Jersey, Freehold Township Planning Board Grants Use Variance for Self-Storage Business
Central Jersey, Freehold Township Planners Consider Variance Request For Self-Storage Facility
Clarence Bee, Plans Stymied for Self-Storage Unit at Corner of Goodrich and County Roads
Community Impact Newspaper, Community Self Storage Plans New Location in Katy Area
Connect Commercial Real Estate, StorQuest Opens Pair of Portland Metro Facilities
Daily Journal, Former Vineland Supermarket May Have Development Plan That Works
Digital Journal, Grand Opening for STORExpress Self Storage
Inside Ottawa Valley, New Business in Arnprior Open for Storage
Ironton Tribune, Facility Will Be Great Investment
Lake Geneva Regional News, ‘World-class’ Self-Service Storage Facility Set to Open in Lake Geneva
Nebraska City News-Press, Mr. Storage Opens in Huxley
Patch, Fort Lee-Area Storage Business Opening Soon
PRWeb, StorQuest Opens Modern Self Storage Facility in Tigard, OR
Rocky Mount Telegram, Future Storage Business Being Built
Tampa Bay Times, What’s Up With Mystery Ruskin Development and Two New Tampa Projects?
The LaGrange Daily News, Storage Master Opens With More Than 200 Units
Yahoo Finance, StorageMart to Add 55,000 Square Feet of Storage Space in Springfield, Missouri Area
Previous Sources:
Brighton and Hove News, Big Yellow Plans to Convert Car Dealership into Storage Depot
The Argus, Objections to New Three-Storey Building
The West Volusia Beacon, Lake Mary Company Plans Mixed-Use Facility in Deland
Digital Journal, Mini Price Storage Announces Opening of a New Self Storage Center in Chesapeake, Virginia
Tucson Local Media, Council Approves New Self-Storage and Executive Offices on Oracle Road
Trib Live, Frazer Supervisors Considering Approval of Self-Storage Business Off Butler-Logan Road
Herald Democrat, RV Storage Facility Approved for Location on U.S. 24
Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Bluefield City Board Approves U-Haul Building Changes
Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Bluefield Planning Commission Approves New U-Haul Facility Plans
Cincinnati Business Courier, Huge Self-Storage Facility Under Construction in Oakley
Fox 13, Seminole Heights Residents Petition City to Block New Self Storage Facility
Shares Magazine, Big Yellow Gets Planning Permission for Store in Hove, to Start Construction in 2020
Insider Media, Green Light for Big Yellow in Hove Newswire, Adaptive Reuse: Sandburg Mall Kmart Becoming U-Haul Self-Storage
PR Newswire, Grand Opening: U-Haul of Decatur Offers 900 Self-Storage Units
South Florida Business Journal, Site in Broward County Could Be Rezoned for Three-Story Project
