Described by Pacific NW Properties founder, Tom Stern as “our finest project in our 32-year history,” South Salem Business Park picked up 2021 “Industrial Development of the Year” honors at the 2022 Night of Excellence in Commercial Estate Awards, the premier event of the year held in early June and put on by the Commercial Association of Brokers, NAIOP, SIOR, BOMA and the Portland Business Journal.
Pacific NW Properties overcame several challenges to deliver the two-building approximately 70,000 square foot multi-tenant industrial business park located in Salem, Oregon. First, the site wasn’t even on the market, but Pacific and their acquisition broker partner, Curt Arthur at SVN Commercial Real Estate Advisors convinced the Seller to let go of the land over a cold glass of iced tea on the Seller’s porch. Once they purchased the site, it was time to “take the leap” and build it during the heart of the Pandemic, something Partner Evan Bernstein says kept him up at night. “It was Pacific’s first entry into Salem – and during a time of uncertainty. To make this critical step into a new market, it HAD to be a perfect development. Location, vision, execution (and lots of luck!).”
Through the help of General Contractor Mega-Pacific and architect Mildren Design Group, along with talented subcontractors from Salem and Portland, Pacific decided to spec out 100% of the office buildout (10 spaces) — a pure guess of what future tenants might want. This was especially risky in a new market where they weren’t as familiar with the demand. Luckily, their premonition was correct. Pacific leased up the project to 8 diverse tenants, ranging from the largest tortilla company in the world (GRUMA Corp), to national, regional and even mom and pop operations. Through the efforts of Senior Leasing Manager, Mitch Page and others, they have manufacturing, distribution, tech, athletic and storage uses leasing space at this project.
“It was Pacific’s first entry into a new market (Salem). It HAD to be a perfect development. Location, vision, execution (and lots of luck!).”
Development is never easy. Significant city-imposed challenges were overcome throughout the process, including a complete redesign of the civil engineering plans midway through the project. Additionally, the development required the collapsing of 6 tax lots into one. “Did we mention supply chain issues spawned by the pandemic causing absolute chaos with materials?,” added Brad Stern, Partner and Director of Development at Pacific NW Properties.
The award-winning South Salem Business Park was the first of (now) 4 properties owned by Pacific NW Properties in Salem Oregon. For more on this project, watch this short 60 second video here: