Universal Insurance Facilities Ltd., a provider of specialty insurance programs for self-storage and other industries, is moving into a new office in downtown Phoenix. On Aug. 2, the company will be officially relocated its newly purchased and remodeled building at 1220 E. Osborn Ave., Suite 101, Phoenix, AZ 85014. Universal’s other contact information, including phone and e-mail, remains unchanged.
 
“This is where we will continue to service our clients now and for many years to come,” said Randy Tipton, president.
 
Universal has been providing comprehensive insurance packages to the self-storage industry for more than 15 years. For more information, call 800.844.2101. Tipton can be reached directly at [email protected].

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Janus International, a supplier of rolling-doors and components for the self-storage, commercial and industrial markets, has acquired certain assets of the Mahon Door Corp. The Warren, Mich., company was founded in 1912, and has enjoyed a long and distinguished history in the rolling-steel industry.

“Mahon was a well-known manufacturer and recognized name nationwide,” said Janus President David Curtis. “This acquisition blends well with our focus of applying innovation and modernization to established principles.” 

While the Michigan plant will remain closed, Janus plans to make available replacement parts and materials to previous Mahon customers for a limited time.

Headquartered in Temple, Ga., Janus manufactures sheet doors, self-storage doors and building components, rolling steel doors, and grilles.

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Extra Space Storage Inc., a self-storage real estate investment trust, released its operating results for the second quarter ending June, 30, 2010. Highlights include:

• Achieved funds from operations (FFO) of $0.22 per diluted share including development dilution of $0.03 per share.
• Same-store occupancy as of June 20, 2010 to 86.2 percent compared to 84 percent as of June 30, 2009.
• Same-store revenue and net operating income (NOI) increased  by 0.7 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively, when compared to the six months ending June 30, 2009. 
• Completed the acquisition of four properties, including three former third-party management sites.
• Completed the development of two properties at a total cost of $21.3 million.
• Declared and paid a quarterly cash dividend of $0.10 per common share.

"During the second quarter, the improving trend in operating fundamentals continued as we realized positive growth in same-store revenue and net operating income with a year-over-year increase in move-in activity,” said Spencer F. Kirk, Chairman and CEO. “We remain confident in our operating platform and high-quality portfolio and believe we will see additional growth as fundamentals continue to improve."

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Access Self Storage, with locations in Oakland and Franklin Lakes, N.J., is partnering with the United Way to collect backpacks for school-age children.

The “Backpacks for Kids” campaign runs through Aug. 19. In addition to backpacks, donations of school and art supplies and clothing are also being accepted. Donations can be made at Access Self Storage of Oakland at 21 Raritan Road, and at Franklin Lakes at 574 Commerce St. during business hours.

Source: North Jersey.com,  Backpacks for Kids Begins

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The plans to covert a vacant auto maintenance center into a self-storage facility are now part of a downtown revitalization project for Burlingame, Calif., a suburb south of San Francisco.

Introduced to the city council by the planning commission earlier this week, the plans call for Mike Harvey Acura at 1070 Broadway to be converted to self-storage units. More units would also be built south of the building. The facility was not a part of the original design, but the planning commission is in favor of the addition.

The owner of a self-storage unit on Rollins Road submitted a letter opposing the change.

The key intent of the $43.6 million revitalization is to make downtown Burlingame more walkable, to build and remodel buildings into mixed-use properties and to create intentional open spaces. Years of public input have gone into the plan. The biggest concern currently is the possible elimination of parking spaces.

The plan has not received full approval from the council and will be discussed at future meetings.

Source:The Daily Journal,Downtown Specific Plan Goes to Burlingame City Council

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An Augusta, Maine, man was charged Tuesday with 49 counts of burglary, theft and criminal mischief in connection with several break-ins at self-storage facilities in Augusta, Manchester and Winthrop, Maine.

Lance M. Szady, 22, is also facing charges in connection with a June 13 robbery at a CVS store. He is being held at the Kennebec County jail on $25,000 bail on the robbery charge. He was one of two men charged in connection with the robbery, in which a white male entered the store and showed the pharmacist a note demanding OxyContin.

Kennebec County Superior Court Justice Nancy Mills on Tuesday set Szady's bail $10,000 on the new charges.

The self-storage burglaries were reported over a span of three days in May. The charges include 21 counts connected to the Augusta burglaries, 20 to Winthrop and eight to Manchester. The stolen items included jewelry, checks, golf clubs and a propane stove.

Source:  Kennebec Journal,  CVS Suspect Faces 49 Burglary Counts
 
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Brenda Scarborough of Accountable Management & Consulting has been awarded the property-management contract for a 777-unit Assured Self Storage facility in Altamonte Springs, Fla. The company will implement all sources of social media and marketing avenues to increase overall occupancy, according to Scarborough, the company’s founder.

Self Storage Data Services Inc., a Los Angeles-based provider of self-storage operating-performance statistics, released its rental-activity report for June 2010. Based on the rental activity of approximately 900,000 self-storage units in 1,500 facilities nationwide, SSDS reported that demand for storage outweighed consumer’s concerns over the economy. Self-storage fundamentals continued to strengthen, led by physical occupancy. Performance varied from market to market, though the east region experienced the largest increases.
 
The complete Self Storage Performance Quarterly report, which reveals rental-activity patterns in various regions of the country, is available only to subscribers and can be downloaded at SSdata.net.

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WeeText.com, a new marketing service, is providing texting-broadcast solutions to self-storage businesses for $1 per day, allowing facility operators to promote their products and services to unlimited subscribers. WeeText.com is a mobile-phone text-subscription service to which current and potential self-storage customers can subscribe to receive facility info such as new rates, specials for referrals, coupons, announcements and more. Self-storage operators can send unlimited text messages through the service.

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DHS Worldwide Software Solutions, a provider of management software for self-storage and mobile-storage businesses, has achieved the Microsoft Gold Certified Partner designation, which represents the highest level of competence and expertise in working with Microsoft technologies and the highest quality products and services as verified by Microsoft.
 
The application process includes obtaining Microsoft competencies through progressive individual training and technology certifications as well as submitting products for testing in the Microsoft lab. The certification process also includes demonstrating enterprise customer-success stories.
 
DHS Worldwide was founded as a custom software firm in the early ‘90s. Today the company’s clients include many large corporations and government agencies. DHS Worldwide offers a range of software solutions for applications including self-storage, mobile storage, records storage, warehouse storage and asset tracking. Its products include the Total Recall line of software programs.

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