Published February 2001

Report: Industrial-space activity up in 2000

By John Wolcott
Herald Business Journal Editor

The attractive industrial real estate market in Snohomish County is being discovered and rediscovered by King County businesses, according to the year-end 2000 study by Cushman & Wakefield’s Bellevue office, boding well for 2001 economic growth in the county.

Just over 228,000 square feet of net space absorption was tallied in 2000, compared to 157,000 square feet in 1999, the report notes, resulting in the overall vacancy rate decreasing from 8.9 percent in January 2000 to 7.5 percent at the end of the year.

The amount of net absorption of industrial space would have been even higher except that the former Raytheon building in Mukilteo was bought by WiredZone, a Texas company, returning 356,150 square feet of space to the marketplace.

Most of the gain in industrial space was centered in the Everett submarket, including Arrow International’s lease of 66,000 square feet in Intracorp’s Seaway Center site and Carnegie Powder Coating’s lease of 60,000 square feet in the Cascade Coffee Building.

Construction activity also rose in 2000 over 1999, ending the year with 557,425 square feet added to the market, with all but 107,403 square feet already leased by the time the projects were completed.

Some of the completed projects included Food Services of America (180,000 square feet) in the new Mountain View Business Park on CSR Associated property, the Helen B. Nelson Industrial Park in Lynnwood (84,000 square feet), the Seaway Corporate Park (78,900 square feet) and Intracorp-Industrial Center-Seaway, Tract III, Building “B” (almost 70,000 square feet).

The Cushman & Wakefield report predicted industrial activity in Snohomish County will continue to be pressured by “diminishing land, tight vacancy rates and skyrocketing rental rates on the Eastside and in Seattle,” pushing traditional industrial users to the North End market.

Demand for industrial space on the Eastside clearly shows why Snohomish County is being eyed for expansion and start-up firms.

During 2000, the net absorption of industrial space on the Eastside reached almost 2.2 million square feet — record demand for that area and a 30 percent increase over 1999, when net absorption was 1.7 million square feet.

Although more than 1.9 million square feet of new industrial space came on line last year, on a par with 1999, shrinking land inventory made life difficult for developers, enticing them to look for opportunities around Woodinville, Monroe, Bothell and Everett.

Industrial space projects now under construction in Snohomish County include:

• Industrial Park Condos at Harbour Pointe, Mukilteo, with 67,200 square feet.
• The 104,094-square-foot, high-tech North Campus Business Center in Mukilteo.
• The Intracorp Industrial Center-Seaway, Tract II-A project, involving 110,000 square feet.

All three projects are expected to be completed by March.

Industrial space on the drawing board includes:

• Quadrant I-5 Corporate Park, high-tech buildings “C” and “D,” each with 47,000 square feet of space.
• Hers Industrial Park, Building 8, with 32,000 square feet.
• Casino Corporate Park II in Everett, by Creative Holding LLC.
• Three new Intracorp buildings in Seaway Center totaling 180,000 square feet.
• The Overall Laundry site, with 42,750 square feet.
• Five buildings totaling nearly 300,000 square feet at Puget Park in south Everett.
• The Port of Everett’s Riverside Industrial Park, a 2002 development of 300,000 square feet.
• The Marysville Industrial Park, Lot 2, with 20,000 square feet of space.

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