Newport Beach, CA, US: Walmart has a new 46,000sq metre freezer distribution hub on a ten-hectare site at Hunter Park. The building, completed in 10 months, is claimed to be one of the largest cold storage facilities in the world holding up to 60,000 pallets, stacked seven high and able to be chilled to -23 degrees C.
Dexus Property Group, part of Australian property investors, developed the freezer for USAA Real Estate Co, that funded the construction and last month sold the building to Cole Real Estate Investments for $91.5m. Pat Duncan, USAA Real Estate chief executive, says the freezer facility “is by far one of the most state-of-the-art distribution buildings in the US”.
Empty freezer space on this scope is a rarity. Darla Longo of brokers CB Richard Ellis, that helped complete the sale, estimates cold storage warehouse vacancy in Southern California is less than 2%.
