Update 3/20/20 – The global self-storage development pipeline continues to be extremely dynamic. Inside Self-Storage regularly covers new projects being planned and approved as well as zoning and other municipal issues. Following is additional activity taking place in March 2020.

Aleksei Bereznoi and Yury Gnesin, managers of 15699 Dixie Highway LLC, are seeking permission to build a seven-story facility in North Miami Beach, Fla. Plans for the 1.33-acre property at 15699 Dixie Highway include 163,660 square feet. The developers acquired the site, which contains a 3,800-square-foot warehouse, for $1.81 million in June. The architect is T.M. Design & Associates.

Affordable Storage LLC, which operates four facilities in Minnesota, is seeking zoning approval to convert the former Sportech building at 11074 179th Ave. N.W. in Elk River, Minn., to indoor, climate-controlled storage. Storage owner Keith Burnham told city officials, who support the project, that he plans to build 500 units and upgrade the property with a loading bay, mezzanine and elevator. Planning manager Zack Carlton and several councilmembers are backing a planned unit development to rezone the property, rather than change the city ordinance. Mayor John Dietz directed city staff to develop the strategy.

Hawaii Self Storage (HSS) is converting a former Bank of Hawaii Service Center in the Iwilei area of Honolulu to storage. Renovations have begun in a shared portion of the building at 909 Dillingham, which will add about 75,000 square feet of drive-up and interior storage in two levels. The first phase of the project will include an administration and reception area, along with new air-conditioning, lighting and security systems. Powered by a solar-panel system, the building is scheduled to open this year. A second phase, expected to begin this year, will add a five-story, 90,000-square-foot building. Clifford Planning and Architecture designed the project. HSS is leasing the existing building from Bank of Hawaii, which owns the 3-acre property. Founded in 2001, HSS operates six properties in Honolulu, Kapolei, Mililani and Pearl City.

HFB LLC, which is owned and managed by Heartland Self Storage Inc., is constructing a new facility at 1204 S.E. 16th Court in Ankeny, Iowa. It’ll include a three-story, 30,000-square-foot building; two 7,500-square-foot single-story buildings; and a 9,750-square-foot single-story structure. HFB purchased the 6.6-acre parcel in March 2018 from Elwell Foundation for $965,330. Heartland owner Daryl Leise is developing a similar multi-story project at 6220 Village View Drive in West Des Moines, Iowa. Heartland also operates a facility at 1306 Prairie Drive S. W. in Bondurant, Iowa.

Real estate developer Hyde New Build Ltd. intends to include an Easistore Self Storage facility as part of its Kingston Wharf mixed-use project in Shoreham, England. The six-story storage structure would connect to a five-story complex featuring office space, a café and a gym. The project also includes 255 homes, a public riverwalk along the Adur River and a bike path. Easistore operates four facilities in Crawley, Edenbridge, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells, England.

Kennards Self Storage, which operates more than 85 facilities in Australia and New Zealand, is converting the former Adelaide Mail Centre in Adelaide, South Australia. The company paid more than $40 million for the 58,805-square-foot building in the city’s central business district. Kennards is a family-owned business based in Sydney. It opened its first self-storage facility in 1973 in Moorebank, Australia.

Life Storage Inc., a self-storage REIT and third-party management firm, intends to develop a facility in the Germantown neighborhood of Philadelphia. The site at 33 E. Woodlawn St. is currently a surface parking lot owned by Philadelphia Suburban Development Corp., a regional developer. The six-story facility would comprise 131,700 square feet in 1,100 units. JKRP Architects is designing the project. The company fielded questions during a design review on March 3, with concerns raised that the blue, yellow and grey color scheme associated with the Life Storage brand wouldn’t fit aesthetically with the brick and stone architecture of the surrounding area. Life Storage has six locations in the metro area, but this would be its first facility within the Philadelphia city limits. Based in Buffalo, N.Y., the REIT operates more than 850 self-storage facilities in 29 states and Ontario, Canada. Its portfolio of owned and managed facilities comprises more than 61.8 million square feet.

A joint venture between Live Oak Capital Partners LLC, Lumpkin Development LLC and MacArthur Holdings LLC began construction on a self-storage facility in Stuart, Fla. The four-story facility at 700 S.W. Federal Highway will comprise 115,000 square feet in more than 860 units. It’s expected to open next spring. DC Construction Associates will serve as general contractor. IberiaBank is providing debt financing. Lumpkin operates 4 million square feet of commercial real estate in Alabama and Georgia. Family-operated MacArthur builds, owns and operates hotel, multi-family, office, retail and self-storage. Based in Atlanta, Live Oak Capital has acquired, developed and sold more than $100 million in commercial properties.

A proposed self-storage development in Old Lyme, Conn., raised questions during a recent zoning hearing now that the owner wants to add a maintenance shop to the building plans. Mar Holding LLC is seeking permission to construct four buildings ranging from 1,800 to 4,200 square feet at 224 Shore Road. One of the structures on the 1.7-acre site would be designed as a “shop/office” so the company’s owner, Frank Maratta, could store trucks and equipment used to maintain his other properties.

Engineer Robert L. Doane Jr., who represented Maratta at the hearing, presented new architectural drawings that modified the fourth building from 30-by-115 to 60-by-115 feet, with a roof height of 16.5 feet. Zoning-commission members expressed concerns about storing vehicles at the site and the lack of lighting and security measures planned for the property. Michael E. Cronin Jr., Maratta’s attorney, said his client would modify the plan if necessary. The public hearing was continued to April.

A mixed-use project that’ll include climate-controlled self-storage and retail space is under development in Boca Raton, Fla. Manley Storage Ventures (MSV), Rosemurgy Properties and Sentry Self Storage will begin construction of the three-story building on the 3.5-acre property at 7171 North Federal Highway in January. Once complete, it’ll contain 128,635 square feet. MSV is owned by Bruce and Jonathon Manley, the developing principals and managing partners for 60 self-storage facilities totaling 4.8 million square feet. Rosemurgy is a privately owned commercial real estate development, investment and management firm that focuses on multi-family, retail, self-storage, office and undeveloped land. Coral Springs-based Sentry has more than 25 properties under management in several states and works with 14 ownership groups.

Rane Property Management LLC is seeking approval to build a mixed-use property in East Amherst, N.Y., that’ll contain self-storage, commercial space and multi-family residences. Sean Hopkins of Hopkins Sorgi & McCarthy PLLC presented the plan on March 4 on behalf of the developer to the town board. The 7-acre property at 7621-7631 Transit Road is the former site of Bitterman’s Automotive. The proposal first appeared before the board in December, but has since been revised to account for the town’s floodway-density development standards, which require 30 percent of the site to remain unfilled. Plans include one two-story mixed-use building with eight apartments and 6,700 feet of first-floor commercial; three townhouse buildings with 12 apartments; and one detached garage. The six storage buildings would be available to tenants of Rane’s portfolio, which also includes Fox Creek Estates and Dockside Village. The units will “resemble high-end garages with sloped roofs, actual shingles, actual windows and stone around the base,” Hopkins said.

Wendy Merkel, owner of Room To Spare Storage at 7545 Transit Road, expressed concern about the project and whether the developer would open the units to the public if not filled by its apartment tenants. Merkel has lost 15 percent of her customers due to new competition, she said, and claimed Rane charges “half of what everyone else in the industry is.” When pressed by board members, Hopkins said Rane believes the demand is there but would likely consider opening the units to the public if it dwindles. Founded in 2012 and based in Bowmansville, N.Y., Rane owns a multi-housing portfolio of nearly 1,600 units. 

RH Rebel Storage will open a new facility in Minot, N.D. The project at 1908 Hiawatha St. S.E. will convert a 16,000-square-foot building that was previously used to store collector cars and items used for Minot’s annual Norsk Hostfest festival. Construction work on the climate-controlled building is complete, with outside concrete work and landscaping expected to conclude this spring. Founded in 2015 by Scott Bintz, RH Rebel operates two facilities in Jamestown, N.D., and one in Valley City, N.D.

SecureSpace Self Storage, which operates six facilities in California, Florida, New Jersey and New York, has opened a new location in Piscataway, N.J. The newly built three-story facility at 1518 S. Washington Ave. comprises 122,000 square feet of climate-controlled and drive-up storage. Based in Redondo Beach, Calif., SecureSpace is owned by InSite Property Group LLC, a development and real estate firm.

Storage Development Inc. (SDI) is building Storage Units Augusta in Augusta, Ga. The three-story project is near the northwest corner of Furys Ferry Road and Riverwatch Parkway. SDI is developing a similar facility called Eclipse Storage near the intersection of Washington Road and William Few Parkway in Evans, Ga. The sites are expected to be the first examples of multi-level, indoor self-storage in the cities, according to a source. Founded in 1995, SDI develops self-storage in the Southeast. It provides site selection, planning, permitting, site prep, metal buildings, construction and erection. SDI also owns pre-engineered metal-building company Rapid Building Solutions.

University Storage intends to convert a 38,610-square-foot industrial building in San Diego to self-storage. The operator acquired the 2.2-acre property at 5150 University Ave. for $7.7 million from San Diego Rescue Mission.

3/20/20 – The global self-storage development pipeline continues to be extremely dynamic. Inside Self-Storage regularly covers new projects being planned and approved as well as zoning and other municipal issues. Following is activity taking place in March 2020.

112 New Brunswick Properties Urban Renewal LLC is seeking approval to tear down a 3,891-square-foot building in Hopelawn, N.J., and build a three-story self-storage facility in its place. Plans for the property at 112 New Brunswick Ave. and 105 Juliette St. include a mixed-use building that’ll comprise 124,766 square feet of self-storage and 3,600 square feet of ground-floor retail. The 1.5-acre brownfields site, which formerly housed Cypress Transport Co. and Prang Trucking, was designated for redevelopment in 2019 by the township council and appeared on the state department of environmental protection’s list of “known contaminated sites.” The planning board held a public hearing to review the request yesterday.

Dallas-based Bariso Lemon Grove Self Storage LLC intends to develop a four-story facility in Lemon Grove, Calif. The property at 8016 Broadway will comprise 77,500 square feet of storage space, along with about 5,500 square feet of retail. The facility is expected to open during the summer of 2021. The developer recently acquired the property from VM Holdings for $3.65 million. The deal was brokered by Laguna Beach, Calif.-based Self Storage Investment Services Inc.

Beyond Self Storage (BSS), which operates 15 facilities in nine states, opened a new location in Port Richey, Fla. A grand-opening celebration on Feb. 29 at 11435 US-19 included “Touch-A-Truck” in which attendees explored vehicles from Pasco County’s fire rescue, sheriff’s office, police department and other local businesses. The event also featured food, games, music and property tours. BSS is the operating brand for NorthPoint Development, a development, management and leasing firm that’s principally focused on the industrial, multi-family, senior-living and self-storage markets in the Central United States.

Real estate development company Brandon Storage Center LLC opened a newly constructed self-storage facility by the same name in Brandon, Fla. The property at 2711 Broadway Center Blvd. comprises 66,375 rentable square feet in 682 units. A March 19 ribbon-cutting ceremony will feature members of the local chamber of commerce. Open to the public, it’ll offer facility tours, music, games and prizes. The facility will be operated by self-storage owner and property-management firm Absolute Storage Management (ASM). Founded in 2002, ASM operates more than 100 properties in 13 states.

Clark Investment Group and Nuvo Development are seeking zoning approval to develop a $5 million self-storage project in Atlanta. The proposed site at 1599 Memorial Drive S.E. would be part of The Atlantic Shopping Center, a mixed-use development by Paces Properties. Based in Wichita, Kan., Clark is a private real estate development and investment company that specializes in self-storage. Founded in 2014, Nuvo Development is an affiliate of Winter Park, Fla.-based Nuvo Co. It offers architecture, development and engineering services to the self-storage industry.

The Powder Springs, Ga., City Council rejected, 3-2, a proposed development from real estate investment trust (REIT) and third-party management firm CubeSmart. The REIT sought a special-use permit to build on the northeast corner of C.H. James Parkway and Sweetwater Avenue, which is in a community-retail-commercial district. The project was opposed by residents in neighboring subdivisions, including a group from Sweetwater Landing, which submitted a petition with 500 signatures. CubeSmart representatives indicated they couldn’t guarantee full prevention of water runoff down a hill to a proposed 45-unit townhouse community called Sweetwater Townhomes. The REIT had also planned to include leasable retail space to make the project viable.

Elsewhere, CubeSmart opened a new facility in Sugar Land, Texas. The property at 15025 Voss Road comprises 91,500 square feet in about 700 units. The REIT owns or manages 1,172 self-storage facilities across the United States. Its operating portfolio comprises 79.6 million square feet.

Commercial real estate developer Galaxy Development LLC will build a three-story Lucky Pick Self Storage facility as part of a mixed-use project in South Worcester, Mass. The storage building at 29-49 James St. will comprise 71,000 square feet in more than 500 units on the former site of Gatto’s Greenhouses & Flower Shop. A separate, 6,000-square-foot structure is permitted for office or retail use. Construction is expected to begin in April and be complete next year. Galaxy acquired the 2-acre property in 2018 for $683,000. Based in Auburn, Mass., Galaxy has developed more than $250 million in projects during the last 10 years.

JNH Co. has begun construction on MoreStor Self Storage in Wichita, Kan. The project on the northwest corner of 143rd and Kellogg Streets will comprise 81,000 square feet in 350 units, according to Nick Howell of JHN. Mike Brand, owner of Michael J. Brand Plumbing Inc. and Cook’s Heating and Cooling Co., is a project partner. Construction is expected to be complete in October.

Johnson Development Associates is developing a five-story Extra Space Storage location in Bayonne, N.J. The 124,960-square-foot facility will sit west of New Jersey Route 440 and border a new road that’ll run from East 24th Street to East 22nd Street. The developer will contribute about $200,000 for the road construction and another $150,000 toward the replacement of a pedestrian bridge, according to Joe DeMarco, redevelopment counsel for the city. In exchange, a 25-year tax abatement will be awarded. Spartanburg, S.C.-based Johnson Development operates more than 30 self-storage properties in the Southeast, all of which are managed by REITs CubeSmart, Extra Space and Life Storage Inc.

My Choice Self-Storage, which operates six facilities in Wisconsin, received approval to add two new buildings to its facility in Slinger. Both will be designed for the storage of boats, RVs and other large vehicles. Construction at 2010 American Eagle Drive will begin this spring, with additional phases developed in the future. My Choice is an affiliate of Dittmar Realty Inc., which specializes in land development as well as multi-family and self-storage property management and construction in Ozaukee, Washington and Waukesha Counties, Wis.

Lee Barwick of Pars Builders is developing a three-story self-storage facility on West Tennessee Street in Tallahassee, Fla. Expected to be complete in August, it’ll offer 589 climate-controlled units. The site is near several student-housing complexes, a U-Haul moving center and two apartment complexes.

Public Storage Inc., a self-storage REIT and third-party management firm, plans to expand an existing facility in Mountlake Terrace, Wash. The project at 21818 66th Ave. W. calls for the demolition of five single-story buildings, to be replaced by a four-story building and a single-story structure. The REIT will also include stormwater facilities, landscaping and improvements to frontage along 66th Avenue. Based in Glendale, Calif., Public Storage has interests in 2,483 self-storage facilities in 38 states, with approximately 169 million net rentable square feet. It holds a 35 percent interest in Shurgard Self Storage SA, which has 234 facilities in seven European countries, with approximately 13 million net rentable square feet.

Stein Investment Group, which operates the Space Shop Self Storage brand, is converting a former Toys R Us in North Olmsted, Ohio, into a mixed-use project that’ll include self-storage and a restaurant as an out-parcel building in the parking lot. The 42,000-square-foot building at 27048 Lorain Road has been vacant for two years. Expected to open in spring 2021, the facility will contain 600 units. Based in Atlanta, Stein owns 3 million square feet of self-storage.

Phoenix-based U-Haul International Inc., which operates more than 1,500 self-storage facilities across North America, is converting a former Kmart in Bristol, Tenn. The operator purchased the site at 2854 W. State St. for $3.3 million in January. Once complete, it’ll comprise 65,000 square feet in 800 interior, climate-controlled units. The site will replace U-Haul’s smaller facility across the street. Established in 1945, U-Haul operates more than 55 million square feet of storage space in North America.

W. P. Carey Inc., a global net-lease REIT that owns more than 100 self-storage facilities nationwide, intends to convert a former retail store at the York Galleria in Springettsbury Township, Pa., to self-storage. Town officials recently voted 3-2 to change zoning for the former Bon-Ton store to allow the project. The York County, Pa., Planning Commission had recommended against the zoning change. Based in New York, W. P. Carey is an investment-management company that oversees a global investment portfolio and has an enterprise value of more than $19 billion. Its diversified portfolio of commercial real estate includes 1,168 net-lease properties comprising approximately 134 million square feet.

The William Warren Group (WWG), a privately held real estate company that operates the StorQuest Self Storage brand, opened a new facility in Brooklyn, N.Y. The property at 507 Osborn St. is between Linden Boulevard and Newport Street. Founded in 1994 and based in Santa Monica, Calif., WWG acquires, develops and operates more than 165 self-storage facilities in 14 states.

New Sources:

Star News, Council Asks for Staff for Rezoning to Allow for Indoor Storage
Yahoo Finance, SecureSpace Self Storage Announces the Grand Opening of a New Self Storage Facility in Piscataway, New Jersey
South Florida Business Journal, Self-Storage Building Proposed in North Miami Beach
The Real Deal, New Self-Storage, Retail Facility Coming to Boca Raton
CT Examiner, Shore Road Plans Raise Questions at Zoning Hearing
Real Commercial, Kennards Self Storage Circling Aus Post’s Adelaide Mail Centre
Clarence Bee, Self-Storage Business Owner Clashes With Mixed-Use Proposal Over New Units
Business Record, Project Update: Ankeny Storage Facility
The August Chronicle, Multistory Self-Storage Hits Metro Augusta
Pacific Business News, Hawaii Self Storage to Add 7th Location at Bank of Hawaii-Owned Building
Philadelphia Business Journal, 131,000-Square-Foot Self-Storage Facility Planned for Germantown
REBusiness Online, San Diego Rescue Mission Divests of 38,610 SF Industrial Property in San Diego
RH Rebel Storage, RH Rebel Storage Expanding to Minot, ND
Worthing Herald, Images Show New Design for 255-Homes and Self-Storage Facility in Shoreham

Previous Sources:

GM Today, Slinger Self-Storage Complex to Expand
Bristol-Herald Courier, Repairs Underway to Convert Former Kmart to U-Haul Storage Center
The Famuan, Convenient Self Storage Location for College Students Is on the Way
NJ.com, Residential Projects and Extra Space Storage Receive 25-Year Abatements in Bayonne
Cleveland.com, Developer Transforming Vacant North Olmsted Toys R Us Building Into New Self-Storage Facility
What Now Atlanta, Three Story, $5MM Self-Storage Facility Planned for the Atlantic Shopping Center
My Central Jersey, Self-Storage Facility Proposed for Hopelawn Section of Woodbridge
Wichita Journal, Another Self-Storage Facility Going Up in Wichita Area
AJC.com, Powder Springs Denies Self-Storage Facility
Community Impact Newspaper, CubeSmart Self Storage Opens 700-Unit Facility in Sugar Land
Connect California, $4M Lemon Grove Self Storage Development Trades
Next MLT, Public Storage on 66th Ave W to Be Expanded With 4-Story Building
Worcester Business Journal, Work Begins on New Worcester Storage Facility
Yahoo Finance, StorQuest Opens Modern Self Storage Facility in Brooklyn, NY
York Dispatch, Springetts Changes Rules to Allow Mini-Storage at York Galleria