Clarion Partners entered the El Paso, Texas, market last year with its acquisition of Rojas East Distribution Center, opening the door for other major institutional investors to possibly follow suit.
New York-based Clarion Partners bought the two-building, 369,310-square-foot industrial campus that was built in 2021 at 12590 Rojas Drive. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Institutional ownership of such a large asset is rare in El Paso, but the deal could help buck that trend and open the door for future investment in West Texas by large investors. The deal earned a 2023 CoStar Impact Award, as judged by real estate professionals familiar with the market.
The warehouse and distribution center is located near Interstate 10 and Eastlake Marketplace, a retail center with major tenants such as Petsmart, Dollar Tree, Ross, Five Below, AT&T, Starbucks, McDonald’s and Burger King.
About the project: Clarion Partners closed on Rojas East Distribution Center on Aug. 1, 2022. Building A is 165,122 square feet and Building B measures in at 204,188 square feet. Building A does not yet have a tenant, according to CoStar data, but Transload Logistics, a transportation company, has leased the entirety of Building B.
What the judges said: “Rojas East brings El Paso additional opportunities to large-scale clients and further solidifies this region of El Paso as a hub for industrial users and investors alike,” said Juan Uribe of Team Juan Uribe LLC.
“Clarion is institutional money coming to El Paso, which is a positive trend for El Paso," said Laura Salome of SVN Fortune Real Estate.
They made it happen: Newmark Managing Director Dustin Volz and Director Dom Espinosa, both of whom were with JLL at the time of the deal, helped complete the acquisition of Rojas East Distribution Center. Richard Schaupp, a fund portfolio manager with Clarion Partners, also worked on the deal.
