InLight Real Estate Partners of Ponte Vedra Beach intends to start construction this year on two industrial parks in Northeast Florida for delivery in the third quarter of 2022.
One is in West Jacksonville and the other is in the St. Augustine Industrial Park in St. Johns County.
“We couldn’t be happier to be so active in Jacksonville, our hometown market,” said Managing Partner David Burch.
“We think this market is set to really pop, and we’re positioning to take full advantage.”
Founders created InLight in early 2021. It is based in Ponte Vedra Beach and has an office in Atlanta, where some of the executives previously led real estate investments.
The four buildings among the two parks will be built speculatively and will be designed to accommodate multiple tenants.
The sites are under contract. The group expects to buy a third property soon in the Jacksonville area.
“We are not buying and waiting for build-to-suits. Tenants in the market don’t have time to wait for build-to-suit projects,” said Charles Margiotta, InLight local market officer.
“We plan to build on spec to meet that fast-paced demand.”
That does not rule out building for a specific tenant if the opportunity is presented.
Burch declined to estimate the investment. He said the group is talking to tenants through brokers, but has not announced which firm will market and represent the properties.
InLight Real Estate Industrial Acquisitions LLC applied to the St. Johns River Water Management District for InLight Industrial at Commonwealth in West Jacksonville.
A preliminary site plan shows two buildings, totaling 502,000 square feet, on about 39 acres at northwest Imeson Road and Commonwealth Avenue.
The two buildings of 229,840 and 272,160 square feet are described as industrial cross-dock.
Margiotta said the larger building is cross-dock, meaning there are dock doors lining both sides of the building. He said the other is single-load, meaning there are dock doors on one side.
Cross-docking is moving goods from one truck directly into another for shipping out. Single-load is traditional warehousing.
Plans show a 185-foot truck court on the loading sides of the buildings. Greater depth means more maneuverability and capacity.
“This is a modern Class A design spec,” Margiotta said.
He said InLight expects to be of interest to national and international firms that seek Class A speculative structures.
The site is opposite the USPS Bulk Mail Center on Imeson Road, and is across Commonwealth Avenue from a FedEx Ship Center and Firestone GCR Tire center.
N.G. Wade Investment Co. is listed as the property owner. Prosser Inc. is the civil engineer and Environmental Resource Solutions is the environmental consultant.
In St. Johns County, the St. Johns River Water Management District is reviewing an application for InLight Real Estate Acquisitions to develop 422,295 square feet among two buildings on 47.7 acres between Interstate 95 and Deerpark Boulevard.
The address is 3800 Deerpark Blvd. in Elkton, north of Florida 207.
Plans show 283,920- and 138,375-square-foot buildings.
Margiotta said those sizes have been adjusted to a 291,200-square-foot single-load structure and a 131,040-square-foot “shallow bay” building catering to smaller tenants in the south St. Johns County market.
Those total 422,240 square feet.
“We have designed two buildings to serve two types of users in the market,” Margiotta said.
“One caters to smaller local tenants that are looking for 25,000 to 50,000 square feet, while the other suits users of 150,000 square feet and up,” he said.
“There is strong demand for both, historically and today.”
The property owners are listed as Big Cypress Associates Ltd., St. Augustine Industrial Development and FCDC Properties LLC.
England-Thims & Miller Inc. is the civil engineer. Peacock Consulting Group LLC is the environmental consultant.
InLight Real Estate is new to the market, although Margiotta is a Jacksonville native and Managing Partner Jeff Berryhill is from Gainesville.
“The fundamentals of this market couldn’t be stronger,” Margiotta said.
“Population growth, job growth, port activity, the Florida ‘halo’ effect – all are drivers attracting new users and leading existing users to expand here,” he said.
State corporate records show InLight Real Estate Acquisitions LLC registered with the state Feb. 22.
Burch said the organization “didn’t really hit stride until mid-March.”
Burch and Berryhill are the managing partners, with Margiotta as vice president and Matt Dileo as principal, according to InLightRE.com.
Burch and Berryhill were executives with Stonemont Financial Group in Atlanta. Burch was general counsel and Berryhill was a principal. They left those positions about year-end.
Margiotta’s background includes asset management and transaction work with Lexington Realty Trust in Dallas-Fort Worth.
Dileo was the founder and president of Diligent Investment Group in Atlanta. He is the principal in InLight’s Atlanta office.
