Cooper Cos. Inc., which owns seven self-storage facilities in El Paso, Texas, is opening a new location in the city. Like its other properties, the $7 million, four-story facility at 995 N. Resler Drive will be managed by self-storage real estate investment trust Extra Space Storage and branded under its name. Expected to open on Aug. 20, the site is be perched on 2.5-acres on an arroyo’s edge. It’ll comprise 120,000 square feet of space in 670 interior, climate-controlled units, according to the source.

Owner John Cooper purchased the land—originally 14.5 acres—35 years ago, according to David Etzold, a commercial real estate broker and owner of Etzold & Co. “Finally, we came up with this plan to develop the temperature-controlled storage facility, and keep 2.5 acres and sell 12 to the Public Service Board as open space and flood control,” Etzold said.

The facility was designed by Fred Dalbin, an architect with Wright & Dalbin Architects Inc. Cooper sought to integrate the building into the slope of the canyon, according to Dalbin, who said it was “gutsy to do something like that.” A Central Texas builder with experience in rough-canyon development was hired to execute the design, the source reported.

“You have to have an owner who’s ready to take the risk with the vision, and I have not seen too many of those,” said Dalbin, whose company designed a similar canyon integration for a residential project on Crazy Cat Mountain in El Paso that included a garage on the ground floor with living area below.

“We are so excited to be opening; it’s been a labor of love,” said Reg Cooper, John Cooper’s son and president of Cooper Cos. “We love this neighborhood. There are so many innovative and exciting new businesses going in, and this will be consistent with them.”

Based in Scottsdale, Ariz., Cooper Cos. is a private real estate company that operates more than 500,000 square feet of self-storage and commercial buildings. In the last five years, it has developed more than 200 acres of residential and 160,000 square feet of commercial product. The company also operates Armour Self Storage in Flagstaff, Ariz.

Source:
El Paso Inc., This Self-Storage Won’t Be Ugly, Hot or Cold