New Pease facility example of needed warehouse/distribution space in NH

John Stebbins, CEO of PROCON, offers his remarks at a ceremony marking the construction of a 102,000-square-foot distribution facility at the Pease International Tradeport. (Photo by Paul Briand)

When it comes to commercial real estate, what New Hampshire needs more of is warehouse/distribution space.

That sector has the least amount of availability within the commercial market, according to a recent report from Colliers International. It has a vacancy rate of a mere 1.1%

That means more than 99% of available space is occupied, even though, as the fourth quarter 2023 Colliers report pointed out: “The warehouse/distribution sector had the most new construction completed. Almost a million SF (square feet) has been added since 2020, resulting in a 3.2% increase in total inventory.”

This dearth of warehouse/distribution space has the attention of Paul Brean, executive director of the Pease International Tradeport. He made note of it during remarks Feb. 6 on the ceremonial start of a project at the Tradeport to build a 102,000-square-foot warehouse/distribution facility for Fidelitone, a supply chain management company.

“This remarkable figure highlights the urgency of expanding and enhancing our facilities to cater to the increasing demands of businesses both within and beyond our region,” said Brean, citing the 99% capacity. “It underscores the necessity of great new spaces like the one we are inaugurating today to accommodate the evolving needs of our business community.”

Remarks made on behalf of U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas, who could not attend the event in person, also reflected the urgent need for this type of space in New Hampshire and countrywide.

“We’re starting to see a more efficient relationship between companies and consumers,” said Pappas. “Since the COVID-19 pandemic, small businesses and individuals have suffered in many ways, including disruptions in dynamics of supply and demand. This is why New Hampshire’s very own supply chain management facility is crucial to overcoming the setbacks we have endured.”

Fidelitone’s new digs

The new facility, which is expected to be up and running by the end of the year, is being purposely built for Fidelitone. While Fidelitone has health/wellness, beauty/personal care, and pet care/supplies companies among its clients, the Portsmouth facility will provide last mile-delivery for furniture. (Last-mile is the final step of delivery from a fulfillment center to the consumer.)

The building at 100 New Hampshire Avenue is being constructed on an 11-acre parcel that is the last of the big vacant parcels available for commercial development at Pease. The project is a cooperative venture between Tidemark and the Kane Company, with PROCON designing and constructing the building.

With a footing in place in the foreground, the wall panels are going up for a 102,000-square-foot distribution facility at the Pease International Tradeport. The facility is being purposely built for Fidelitone for furniture delivery. (Photo by Paul Briand)

“Everybody here knows the blood, sweat and tears that this takes, and we’re just so grateful to everybody here today — our partners that have allowed us to work through those challenges,” said Joe Geoghegan, Tidemark partner and director of development.

The Tidemark/Kane partnership originally was forged two years ago with the idea of building an air cargo facility at the Portsmouth International Airport at Pease. John Stebbins and Jen Stebbins Thomas own PROCON for designing and building projects, and they are partners with Eben Tormey and Joe Geoghegan in Tidemark – a separate development company.

But, for a variety of reasons, according to PROCON CEO John Stebbins, that idea didn’t get off the ground.

“We shut it down, realizing that it was not the best opportunity for the neighborhood. We got some good pushback from the neighbors, Rye, Newington, and realized that was not going to be a project for us,” said Stebbins.

They pivoted to development outside of the airport zone at Pease, focusing on the New Hampshire Avenue parcel with the idea of an advanced manufacturing plant, heavy on robotics. But the economy and the economics of that project didn’t work either.

“We ended up with a great company called Fidelitone,” said Stebbins. “It’s going to be a 100,000-square-foot facility with 30 loading docks, and they’re going to be delivering large furniture all over, within 100 square miles. It’ll be white-glove delivery; they’ll bring furniture in here, distribute it to box trucks and then distribute that furniture to people’s houses.”

The event was a panel-raising ceremony, distinct from a ground-breaking or topping-off event. Participants signed one of the wall panels that make up the exterior frame of the large building.

The Fidelitone building is one of the recent commercial real estate projects for the Seacoast.

Other projects

The other was announced in Dover — two separate buildings totaling 35,000 square feet — being proposed by Future Automation. That company says it designs and manufactures a range of lift mechanisms for wall mounts, projector mounts and drops, moving panel mechanisms, ceiling mount and drops, and floor and table mounts that can be integrated into AV installations.

The Future Automation project is proposed for land owned by the Dover Business & Industrial Development Authority at Enterprise Park.

Other large-scale commercial real estate projects cited by the 2023 Q4 Colliers report include the R.J. Kelly Company’s purchase of a 227,589-square-foot distribution/manufacturing facility for $39.7 million on Innovation Way in Londonderry. Also, a 339,777-square-foot warehouse/distribution building on Ocean Road in Greenland sold as part of a portfolio sale to an LLC associated with Westbrook Partners in December for $33.25 million. The building has been the long-time home of Cole Haan, a national men’s and women’s footwear and accessories company.