Building larger than football field going up in Beaufort Commerce Park. How will it be used?
A top-of-the-line commercial building, longer than a football field, is going up in Beaufort Commerce Park at 74 Schein Loop. It’s being hailed as the park’s first major success after years of little progress in attracting interest.
It already is drawing strong interest from top-tier manufacturing companies, say economic development officials. The eventual tenant, they say, will bring high-paying jobs in advanced manufacturing, possibly in the aerospace or health care sectors.
The “class A” speculative building is being constructed by Columbia-based Magnus Development Partners with public support from city and county in the Commerce Park, which is located eight miles northwest of the city.
Class A buildings are considered the newest and highest quality buildings in the market. A “spec” building by a developer or contractor is constructed for the purpose of resale or lease.
Magnus’ Kevin Werner said at the site Wednesday that having a high-quality building in place is critical to attracting companies because it takes the risk out of having to construct their own.
“Now we’re gong to have a building that says, ‘We can compete,’” Werner said.
The building is designed to accommodate up to four tenants but more likely will house one or two, Werner said.
Construction has begun. A pad is already in place where the 160-foot-wide by 400-foot-long building will sit.
Choate Construction out of Charleston has been hired to construct the building.
Ian Scott, executive director of the Beaufort Regional Chamber of Commerce, said he is confident a tenant will be known before construction is finished.
Scott called the new building a milestone in the history of the park, which has seen little progress until recently.
“It’s somebody making a bet on Beaufort, which I think is smart,” Scott said of the project.
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The 64,000-square-foot building will be located in the 196-acre commerce park owned by the city located off of U.S. 21.
The city bought the park out of foreclosure for $1.8 million in 2012 from S.C. Bank and Trust. The park was owned by the Lowcountry Economic Network before it went bankrupt.
“This park has been floating around for 20 years with no success, quite honestly, to speak of,” said John O’Toole, executive director of the Beaufort County Economic Development Corp., which has worked with the city in promoting it.
There have been recent successes, however, with assistance of public funds.
In June, for example, the city announced that Materials Research Group, a glass manufacturer, would establish operations in the park. It is expected to invest $3.1 million and bring 27 jobs to the area. It plans to open in January 2022 operating out of a new 10,000-square-foot building.
The state Coordinating Council for Economic Development approved a $50,000 Set-Aside grant to Beaufort County to assist with costs related to that project.
In the development deal with Magnus, the county agreed to contribute $250,000 toward construction. Magnus bought the 6-acre site from the city, but it won’t have to repay the $140,000 until after it finds a tenant. It has five years to do that, but Werner said he hoped to have an announcement on a tenant in 6 or 7 months
Magnus Development Partners is investing more than $5 million in the building.
Four to five prospective companies are interested already in locating in the new building, including an aerospace company that would employ 150 with average annual salaries of $63,000, O’Toole said.
The building will be available for leasing in the first quarter of 2022.
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