San Diego County has seen rising rates of availability and vacancy rates in the last few quarters. Among this challenging data, a 134,299 square foot industrial property on 8.99 acres has been offered for sale at 2340 Cousteau Court in Vista.
The marketing efforts are being led by Rusty Williams, Chris Roth and Jake Rubendall from the Lee & Associates’ Carlsbad team. The asking price is undisclosed. However, public records indicate that the property last traded in 2020 when it was acquired by an entity linked to E V 2340 LLC, for $22 million, or about $164 per square foot.
The Class B single-tenant industrial facility was originally constructed in 1999. The two-story structure includes the warehouse facility on the ground floor as well as 27,300 square feet of office space on the second floor, making the property conducive to be used as an industrial company headquarters and manufacturing/warehousing space.
According to the marketing materials, the modern industrial structure is equipped with four grade level doors measuring 12 by 14 feet, providing access for logistics. Additionally, there are eight dock high doors, with six featuring dock levelers and the option to expand to 18 levelers, enabling a variety of distribution and shipping operations. The interior has a clear height ranging from 26 to 28 feet, allowing for storage capacity and racking systems.
The facility also offers a provision of 350 kW Sunpower E20 solar panels and has natural gas availability. Zoning is classified as Research Light Industrial, making it available for various research and light industrial activities. The property also has ample parking with 254 spaces catering to employees and visitors.
2340 Cousteau Court is located between South Melrose Drive and Park Center Drive with access to California State Route 78 and US Interstate Highway 5. Corporate neighbors include companies such as The Home Depot, Leica and others.
Recent industry reports show the industrial space leasing activity across San Diego County hit a new low in the third quarter of 2023, recording at approximately 1.46 million square feet. The Kidder Mathews San Diego Industrial Market Trends report states that while the overall leasing activity has been on a declining trend over the past few quarters, there’s been a notable surge in demand for smaller 50,000 square foot spaces, which are being leased at record speeds.
Concurrently, both vacancy and availability rates are experiencing significant increases, with a year-over-year jump of 47 percent and 96 percent, respectively. The steady rise in vacancies since the year’s onset is anticipated to plateau at around 5.5 to six percent, suggesting a stabilization in the near future, adds the report.
In the third quarter of 2023, there was also a substantial decline in sales volume, plummeting to 877,000 square feet. This represents a 10-year low and a year-over-year decrease of 70 percent, especially when compared to the 2.9 million square feet reported in the same quarter of 2022, states the report. The two biggest sales transactions both occurred in Otay Mesa where the nearly 200,000 square foot Runway Distribution Center was purchased by Ares Management Corp. for $57 million or approximately $285 per square foot, and the 133,000 square foot Empire Center was sold to T&S Properties $34.6 million or approximately $261 per square foot.
