by Bradley Parsons
Staff Writer
Jacksonville’s industrial real estate appears to be following a stagnant national trend.
A consultant hired by the City to evaluate the downtown housing market said the industrial sector hadn’t grown in 2003. Ray Rodriguez, president of the Real Estate Strategy Center of Northeast Florida, said the City’s vacancy rate likely hovered around 11 or 12 percent. A study of the top 50 metro markets nationally showed their vacancy rates climbed last year to 11.8 percent from 11.2 percent in 2002, according to Reis Inc., a New York real–estate research firm.
“We’re probably not too far off those national numbers,” said Rodriguez. “We didn’t see any major announcements in 2003 of major industry relocating to Jacksonville.”
According to Reis, 2003 marked the third straight year of “negative absorption,” meaning renters left the market as the year progressed. Absorption accounts for the amount of vacant industrial space rented. The near 12 percent vacancy rate was the highest level measured since 1980.
Sectors of Jacksonville’s market could be primed for future growth, said Rodriguez. Demand should grow around Jaxport once new piers are finished. Cecil Commerce Center could benefit from proposed infrastructure improvements working their way through the City Council, and Northwest Jacksonville should continue to attract industrial renters because of its proximity to the railway and highways I–95 and I–10.
“When you’re talking industrial real estate, renters don’t care so much about quality of life concerns that drive residential and office. They locate strategically to serve their clientele. You’re talking road infrastructure, highways, boats, the rails, because they want to deliver their product to their customer as quickly and efficiently as possible,” said Rodriguez.
A lack of access to transportation has hurt the City in its attempts to lure industry to the Westside’s Cecil Commerce Center, he said. With no railway, Cecil is accessible to I–10 only by two–lane Chaffee Road.
“There’s no question the Chaffee extension has been detrimental to Cecil,” said Rodriguez. “If I’m a renter, and I need to ship my product, one accident on Chaffee wipes out my entire shipping lane to I–10. That’s why Cecil has been passed by.”
Rodriguez’ comments echoed statements given by City planners to the City Council earlier this month. Jacksonville Economic Development Commission executive director Kirk Wendland told the Council’s Finance Committee that a lack of transportation access had been a “major issue” in the City’s failure to bring Daimler/Chrysler to Cecil in 2002. The Council approved Tuesday a mayor’s office plan to divert $11.8 million in Better Jacksonville Plan Funds to help pay to improve access from Cecil to I–10.