CBRE today announced that it has arranged for the sale of SoPhi Logistics Center, a 283,500 sq. ft. last mile industrial facility located at 2400 Weccacoe Avenue in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The CBRE National Partners’ team comprised of Michael Hines, Brian Fiumara, Brad Ruppel and Lauren Dawicki marketed thefacility and negotiated the terms of the sale on behalf of the seller, Wharton Industrial Partners, who acquired the asset in September 2019. Patrick Green, Michael Mullen and Jake Terkanian, also with CBRE, represented the landlord in leasing the facility.
After buying the property, Wharton Industrial and their capital partner, an affiliate of Walton Street Capital, LLC, invested significant capital for a complete asset repositioning, transforming the former production facility into a state-of-the-art urban logistics facility. The comprehensive improvement program capitalized on the expansive 15.21-acre site’s streamlined circulation and traffic flows, adding Class A finishes to fulfill the requirements of high-throughput last-mile users.Prior to the end of renovations, a lease was signed for the entire building.
“We were really pleased with the execution of the entire CBRE team on this transaction from acquisition, leasing to sale,” noted Peter C. Lewis, President of Wharton Industrial. “Many others in the market passed on this opportunity, but we always believed that, with the proper execution, we could do something special here given the uniqueness of the asset in satisfying the burgeoning demand for last mile properties,” he added.
“The vision exhibited in the repositioning of SoPhi Logistics Center was unparalleled,” said CBRE Executive Vice President Brad Ruppel. “Density of labor and consumers, multi-directional highway/interstate connectivity, expansive parking capacity, and streamlined product flow are hallmarks of urban logistics connectivity. This execution is an ideal case study for strategic rejuvenation of existing Philadelphia industrial stock toward enduring and flexible e-commerce functionality.”
Originally built in 1970, the facility has been retrofitted and converted for many different uses over the last few decades, having once served as the home to Hyundai Rotem, a South Korean company that vacated the property in 2018. Currently, the property is 100 percent occupied.
SoPhi Logistics Center is strategically located near the Port of Philadelphia, Philadelphia International Airport, Interstates 95, 295 and 76 and just three miles from Philadelphia City Hall.
About CBRE Group, Inc.
CBRE Group, Inc. (NYSE:CBRE), a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in Dallas, is the world’s largest commercial real estate services and investment firm (based on 2019 revenue). The company has more than 100,000 employees (excluding affiliates) and serves real estate investors and occupiers through more than 530 offices (excluding affiliates) worldwide. CBRE offers a broad range of integrated services, including facilities, transaction and project management; property management; investment management; appraisal and valuation; property leasing; strategic consulting; property sales; mortgage services and development services. Please visit our website at www.cbre.com.
About Wharton Industrial
Wharton Industrial is a platform company of New York-based Wharton Equity Partners, founded in 1987. The firm is an owner and developer of last mile and bulk distribution warehouses on the east coast, and in Florida and select cities in the southeastern US. Wharton Industrial has been particularly busy in the Philadelphia, including the recent purchase of a 1.1 million SF, 32-property portfolio of warehouses in southern New Jersey. Since July 2020, Wharton Industrial has been involved in over $300 million of transactions.
