The Woodlands, Texas, a 28,000-acre master-planned community near Houston, is experiencing a self-storage development boom. The vicinity has grown from being served by a single facility, opened last year by Free Eagle Storage, to three facilities, as Amazing Spaces Storage Centers and The Howard Hughes Corp. (HHC) added locations in December and February, respectively, according to the source. HHC, whose facilities are managed by CubeSmart, a publicly traded self-storage real estate investment trust and third-party management firm, will open a second facility in the area in April, while Amazing Spaces is expected to add a second location in the market next year.

April 14, 2017

2 Min Read
Self-Storage Development on the Rise in The Woodlands, TX, Area

The Woodlands, Texas, a 28,000-acre master-planned community near Houston, is experiencing a self-storage development boom. The vicinity has grown from being served by a single facility, opened last year by Free Eagle Storage, to three facilities, as Amazing Spaces Storage Centers and The Howard Hughes Corp. (HHC) added locations in December and February, respectively, according to the source. HHC, whose facilities are managed by CubeSmart, a publicly traded self-storage real estate investment trust and third-party management firm, will open a second facility in the area in April, while Amazing Spaces is expected to add a second location in the market next year.

HHC specifically chose The Woodlands to make its entrance into the self-storage industry through its wholly owned subsidiary The Woodlands Development Co. “The storage industries have been performing well above other markets,” Jim Carman, vice president of commercial land development for HHC, told the source. “There were few storage opportunities in The Woodlands before. There were a few [options], but they were virtually full and charged a high rate due to scarcity. We knew we could deliver a higher-quality product.”

Population growth in the area, coupled with aging residents looking to downsize, have helped fuel the local self-storage development interest, Carman said.

HHC’s first facility opened at 6375 College Park Drive and contains 654 storage units. The second site, along FM 2978, is scheduled to open in April with 784 storage units, according to an earlier announcement.

Amazing Spaces had four Texas facilities when it targeted The Woodlands for two locations in April 2015. The company opened a 103,000-square-foot facility at FM 2978 and Research Forest Drive in February and broke ground in March on a 98,000-square-foot location just south of The Woodlands in Spring, Texas. The property off Holzwarth Road is about a half-mile from the new Exxon Mobil corporate campus.

“The Woodlands is our target market,” Kathy Tautenhahn, vice president and co-owner of Amazing Spaces, told the source. “There’s been a lot of new development in The Woodlands, and so we’ve gone through a little growth. For example, office space here went through a wave of growth, so that’s what is happening here with the [storage industry].”

Amazing Spaces opened its first storage facility in 1998. The Spring location will be its sixth location. In addition to traditional self-storage units, the facilities offer boat/RV storage, wine storage and more.

HHC owns, manages and develops commercial, residential and mixed-use real estate throughout the country. It was co-founded by Howard R. Hughes Sr. in 1913.

Founded in 1974, the Woodlands Development Co. builds master-planned communities in Houston. The communities include land, office, retail, residential and hospitality properties.

Sources:

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