The Goodman Group, one of the world’s leading industrial property developers, on Monday officially announced the acquisition of Long Beach’s former Boeing C-17 site and a former distribution center in Los Angeles that together make up the largest industrial parcel space in the Southland.
The Australian company last month bought the 93-acre Boeing site adjacent to the Long Beach Airport for upwards of $200 million, officials said.
In a news release on Monday, the company said the Boeing site, which was renamed the “Goodman Commerce Center Long Beach,” and a 37-acre former distribution site in Los Angeles, will provide potential customers with “high-quality industrial opportunities to operate out of key urban locations.”
Goodman, which boasts an estimated $30 billion in assets, specializes in industrial and commercial property development and management spanning 17 countries. The company serves as one of the largest international landlords for Amazon. It has recently expanded into Southern California with major acquisitions in Anaheim and Santa Fe Springs.
The newly-bought properties in Los Angeles and Long Beach are part of the company’s “global gateway city strategy” to own industrial real estate in urban markets.
Anthony Rozic, CEO of Goodman North America, in a statement said the two sites are up for grabs for the first time in years.
“Supply across the Los Angeles market is heavily constrained with a current total vacancy rate of approximately one percent,” he said. “This makes the size and location of these facilities beneficial to prospective customers looking to improve their delivery speed to market.”
The former Boeing site, which includes a 1.1 million-square-foot assembly building, was once the production home for Boeing’s C-17 Globemaster III cargo plane before the facility shuttered in 2015. Boeing listed the property for sale in November.
The massive space is part of the city’s Globemaster Corridor Specific Plan, which aims to revitalize the area as a “twenty-first century employment district.” The plan includes revitalizing Cherry Avenue as a thriving business corridor.
City Councilwoman Stacy Mungo, whose 5th District includes the site, has said she envisions the area as a mixed-use space with industrial and other businesses. The city has introductory meetings planned with Goodman.
Any proposed development must be approved by the city’s planning commission. The area also will require rezoning, since the site is currently zoned for aeronautical work and limited industrial uses, city officials said.
Goodman in its new release said it plans to work closely with the city to reflect Long Beach’s vision for the site in the Globemaster Corridor Specific Plan.
The sale to Goodman was a loss for United Parcel Service, which had bid earlier this year to build a regional service hub.