CIT Lends on Pennsylvania Industrial Development

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East Coast industrial still has appeal.

New York-based CIT Real Estate Finance provided construction financing to the Dallas office and industrial developer Hillwood Investment Properties for a 1.2-million-square-foot warehouse and distribution center in York County, Pa., Mortgage Observer has first learned.

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The debt totaled about $42 million, according to a third-party source with knowledge of the deal. CIT declined to give the loan and total project amounts. A representative for Hillwood was not immediately available for comment.

Trade Center-83 site. (Hillwood)
Trade Center-83 site. (Hillwood)

The development, called Trade Center-83, is being built on 95 acres of land in the borough of Manchester using tilt-up construction. The completed industrial property will feature 50-foot by 56-foot column spacing and 36-foot ceiling clear heights.

“The demand for Class-A industrial property in Central Pennsylvania is very strong,” said Matthew Galligan, president of CIT Real Estate Finance, in a written statement.

“With demand significantly outweighing the supply of investment grade industrial product in New Jersey, big-box tenants are finding it more cost effective to locate to Eastern and Central Pennsylvania, and the market is witnessing many requirements over 1 million square feet,” he said.

The location of Trade Center-83 provides easy access to several interstate highways, including I-78 and I-83, according to Steve Reedy, managing director of CIT Real Estate Finance. The proximity to those thoroughfares will make the finished center attractive to fulfillment and distribution tenants, he said.

“The site is within a one-day drive of six of the ten largest U.S. markets and 60 percent of Canada’s population,” Mr. Reedy said. “The site is also very proximate to vital service providers including UPS, FedEx and the Norfolk-Southern Intermodal.”