In this issue:

• Generating Revenue and Energy From the Sun: Steps to maximizing return on investment
• The Solar Solution: A model for generating greater income through solar installation
• A Case Study of Oakley Executive Boat/RV Storage: Overview of a living, breathing solar project in Oakley, Calif., including assumptions and financials
• Operators Weigh the Impact of Going Solar: Assessing the true impact of adding solar panels to a storage facility
• Financing a Solar Project: Solutions for handling your upfront capital costs

If you're interested in adding solar panels to an existing or future self-storage facility, don't miss this overview of pros, cons and options.

 

U.K. self-storage operator LoknStore has selected Duchess of Kent House, a hospice organization, as its charity of choice for its Reading, England, location. The facility will support the group through various fundraising activities through June 2013.

Kelly Strange, manager of LoknStore Reading, presented Duchess of Kent House with a certificate to commemorate the relationship.

We are really delighted to be forming this partnership. With many of our customers residing in the local area, it is important for us to support the community around our center, Strange said.

In addition to fundraising events, the facility will make a £25 (approximately $39) donation to Duchess of Kent House every time the organization directs a customer to LoknStore and that person makes a storage reservation.

Lok'nStore operates 22 self-storage facilities in Southeast England. The company builds, buys or leases large warehouses or industrial buildings and rents storage units to customers on a weekly basis. Around 60 percent of the company's 7,000 customers are residential and 40 percent are commercial. LoknStore has more than 920,000 square feet of net rentable space, which is evenly split between freehold and leasehold.

California self-storage provider A-1 Self Storage is giving back to the community through participation in local charitable events and monetary contributions.

The company made a contribution to the UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center and competed in its 19th Annual Longboard Invitational Surf for the Cure event on Aug. 19 at Scripps Beach in San Diego. During the event, each company-sponsored surf team paired up with a surfing legend to compete. The A-1 team took first place.

Moores Cancer Center, which is one of 40 National Cancer Institute Designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers nationwide, helped raise awareness and funds for cancer research, educational programs, outreach and patient care at the surf event.

A-1 also gave a donation to Saint Martin de Porres High School. Located in one of Cleveland's economically challenged areas, Porres High School serves students in communities who have limited access to private education, and gives students the individual attention that encourages them to thrive and excel in their educational experience through campus ministry.

San Miguel Cristo Rey High Schools internship program also received a donation from A-1. The school was established in response to an education deficit in Tucson, Ariz., to create a learning community for students who were born into families of limited financial means.

A-1 Self Storage has 17 locations in the San Diego County area and more than 40 locations statewide. It is the self-storage division of the Caster Cos., a third-generation, family-owned company headquartered in Southern California since 1959. Caster Cos. develops and manages A-1 Self Storage, A-1 Car Storage and other commercial properties in California. Its portfolio includes more than 4 million square feet of real estate.

Hillsdale Self Storage in San Jose, Calif., sold for $4,850,000 to Extra Space Storage, a self-storage real estate investment trust. Located on Charter Park Drive, the multi-story facility has 33,318 net rentable square feet with 369 units. The facility was 95 percent occupied at the time of the sale.

Carl Touhey and Jason Jay Allen of Performance Self Storage Group (PSSG) represented the buyer and seller. This transaction was unique in the fact that Extra Space Storage had to deal with the daunting task of assuming a conduit loan, which took a considerable amount of time to accomplish, Touhey said. Todays self storage investors are lining up to buy assets similar to this in strong core markets throughout the country. They prefer the larger facilities to take advantage of the economies of scale, but this asset fit perfectly in Extra Spaces portfolio.

Performance Self Storage Group specializes in self-storage brokerage, marketing and consulting, and has offices in California and Florida.

Headquartered in Salt Lake City, Extra Space is a real estate investment trust (REIT) that owns or operates 882 self-storage properties in 34 states and Washington, D.C. The company's properties comprise approximately 585,000 units and 64 million square feet of rentable space, offering storage solutions including boat storage, RV storage and business storage.

Supply Side USA, a national distributor of packaging, moving and storage supplies for self-storage and other industries, has appointed Robert Rob Kaminski as its new vice president of sales. Kaminski has more than 20 years of experience serving independent and chain self-storage operators.

Even when I managed their largest competitor, I had to admire Supply Sides merchandising skills and a level of customer service most distributors can only dream of," said Kaminski. "For me, joining their team is like moving up to the majors.

In addition, company founder Roy Katz has been engaged to assist with Supply Side USA's marketing planning. Roys ideas on service and merchandising helped self-storage businesses boost retail sales. Roy is going to help us show more businesses how to make more money," said Barry Johnston, president.

Supply Side offers shipping/moving cartons, carton-sealing tape, cushioning materials, gift boxes, and moving supplies specifically designed for self-storage operations. It also assists customers in improving retail performance through plan-o-gram programs. The company has been in business for more than 50 years. Its website includes an online ordering system, sales tips, display layouts and merchandising materials.

Jerry Sabinis name remains attached to Jerrys Self-Storage in New Windsor, N.Y., but the beleaguered owner recently sold his remaining stake in the business during a public auction tied to his 2009 Chapter 7 bankruptcy case. Developer John Magee purchased the 20 percent share with a minimum bid of $7,500. Magee was a principal in FKF 3, which loaned Sabini $5 million in 2007 and then allegedly turned into a Ponzi scheme.

FKF 3 reportedly issued the $5 million loan to Sabini at 14 percent interest and later financed an additional $1 million to complete the self-storage project. A bankruptcy complaint filed last month by a court-appointed trustee alleges the additional $1 million loan bypassed Sabini and instead paid 10 contractors directly, even though the fund did not take any collateral. The trustee argues the vendor payments were improper and those contractors should repay the money even though their involvement in the project was legal and they are not accused of wrongdoing.

In exchange for making the contractor payments, the creators of the FKF 3 fundMagee, Burton Dorfman and Mitchell Kleinallegedly assumed 80 percent ownership of the self-storage business independent of FKF 3. Once construction was complete, FKF 3 refinanced the original $5 million loan, but the money it received allegedly went for personal use, including $90,000 to a charity tennis tournament connected to Klein, an unreported amount to the Kennedy Funding Invitational, and $2.8 million to Magees brother and companies connected to Magee. Those money transfers are reportedly under investigation.

With the purchase of Sabinis remaining share, Magee now independently controls the self-storage business, according to the source. Magee, Sabini and a Jerrys Self-Storage employee were the only members of the public present during the auction.

As many as 100 lenders supposedly provided money to FKF 3. One of them, Daniel Moriarty, has complained FKF 3 should own the self-storage facility and not Magee, since the lenders money was used to gain control of the business.

FKF 3 went into bankruptcy in 2010, reportedly owing $60 million to its lenders. The fund claims it is still owed $1.5 million from Jerrys Self-Storage.

The four-story facility sits on 3 acres and is valued at $2.62 million. However, approximately $4.8 million is still owed on the property to Oritani Bank in New Jersey, in addition to the disputed amount owed to FKF 3, according to the source.

Before the sale of his 20 percent share, Sabini was absorbing $12,000 in monthly losses.

The U-Haul Co. recently purchased three self-storage facilities comprising more than 150,430 square feet of net rentable storage space and more than 1,190 storage units. The properties are in Florida, Minnesota and Texas. No financial terms were disclosed.

The acquired facilities include:

• 12420 Starkey Road, Largo, Fla. The facility features five single-story buildings with more than 450 storage units and 51,400 square feet of net rentable space.
• 12200 Portland Ave., Burnsville, Minn. The property features a three-story building with more than 390 storage units and 47,530 square feet of net rentable space.
• 2711 East Highway 190, Copperas Cove, Texas The property features seven single-story buildings with more than 350 storage units and 51,500 square feet of net rentable space.

Established in 1945, U-Haul has 36 million square feet of storage space at more than 1,000 owned and managed facilities throughout North America. The company recently completed the acquisition of a self-storage facility in Colorado and two more in Florida.

A man who purchased the contents of a self-storage unit during an auction at an Uncle Bobs Self Storage facility in Pensacola, Fla., discovered human organs belonging to more than 100 people preserved inside drink cups and Tupperware containers. Dr. Michael Berkland, a former medical examiner, allegedly hid the hearts, lungs and brains between 1997 and 2007, investigators said.

Berkland was fired from his position as a Pensacola medical examiner in 2003 for failing to complete autopsy reports. The self-storage unit came up for auction only recently after Berkland failed to remain current on rental payments.

The man who won the unit auction first found a rotting human heart inside a 32-ounce drink cup that had a cracked lid. The organs, as well as some tissue samples, were soaking in formaldehyde inside their containers. He immediately alerted local police.

Florida officials are cross-referencing names in their database with Berklands autopsy cases to see if they can determine the origins of the organs. Investigators believe the body parts may be from private autopsies performed at local funeral homes.

No charges have been filed in the case, as officials continue their investigation.

As self-storage facilities begin to age, they may require capital improvements to remain competitive in their markets. Inside Self-Storage (ISS) has released a digital magazine issue on "Self-Storage Facility Refurbishing," which includes articles regarding the renovation, expansion and improvement of existing self-storage facilities. The publication is available for free download at www.insideselfstorage.com/digital-issues.

Refurbishments can range from simple upgrades like fresh paint and new pavement to more complex projects such as roof upgrades, new siding and replacement roll-up doors. This special issue offers self-storage operators tips for accomplishing facility renovation, including case studies to demonstrate specific improvement strategies. Specific topics include:

• Where to begin and important items to consider
• Three steps to rehabilitating an older site
• Renovation case study of a facility in Chattanooga, Tenn.
• Meeting ADA requirements
• Incorporating eco-friendly elements

For more than 20 years, ISS has provided informational resources for the self-storage industry. Its educational offerings include a monthly magazine, annual conferences and tradeshows, an extensive website, an education institute, an online store, and Self-Storage Talk, the industrys largest online community.