Our Approach
Ground-up industrial development allows us to create modern facilities that directly align with tenant demand. Where value-add strategies leverage in-place cash flow, ground-up provides blank-slate flexibility — designing tilt-wall distribution centers, flex bays, or light manufacturing facilities tailored to credit tenants.
This strategy carries higher risk than value-add, given the absence of existing income during construction. But the payoff is long-term durability, premium rents, and tenant stickiness created by customized design and market-leading functionality.
Where We Focus
Sites with strong highway access, labor pool proximity, and zoning support for industrial use. We prioritize infill parcels where supply is constrained and suburban growth corridors where demand is accelerating.
Execution Levers
- Site selection with zoning, access, and utility readiness
- Financing and performance agreements that mitigate risk
- Tilt-wall and metal building formats tailored to tenant use
- Flexible layouts — divisible bays or single-tenant shells
- Modern specifications: clear heights, ESFR sprinklers, dock ratios
Market Context
The Texas Triangle is one of the nation’s fastest-growing industrial regions:
- Houston: Port-driven demand in logistics, petrochemical, and medtech supply chains.
- Dallas–Fort Worth: A national distribution hub with unmatched highway and rail connectivity.
- Austin: Semiconductor and advanced manufacturing growth driving specialized industrial demand.
- San Antonio: A cross-border logistics corridor shaped by NAFTA/USMCA trade flows.
In these markets, ground-up development fills critical gaps where existing product cannot meet modern tenant requirements.
Case Study — Pearl River’s Stiles Lane, Sugar Land
Pearl River Companies developed Stiles Lane, a 7.8-acre site at 13025 Stiles Ln in Sugar Land, into 107,000 square feet of flex and light manufacturing space. With a capital investment of approximately $10 million, the project was supported by an economic development performance agreement with the City of Sugar Land, including reimbursements for infrastructure improvements.
The development delivered modern tilt-wall space to a suburban market underserved by high-quality industrial product. By pairing strong tenant demand with public-private partnership support, Stiles Lane exemplifies how ground-up execution creates value in the Texas Triangle.
The Value of Ground-Up Industrial
- Class A Facilities: Premium rents and tenant stickiness from modern design.
- Customization: Ability to deliver build-to-suit solutions for logistics, flex, or light manufacturing users.
- Market Impact: Fill gaps in underserved corridors with durable, scalable product.
- Scalable Upside: Unlike incremental repositioning, ground-up allows for transformational development.
See how this strategy complements our Value-Add Industrial and Value-Add Retail strategies, reinforced by the disciplined underwriting of Deal Studio and proven outcomes in our Track Record.
Ground-Up Industrial — FAQs
How does ground-up compare to value-add industrial?
Ground-up carries more risk due to the absence of in-place cash flows, but allows full customization and the ability to capture premium rents with Class A product. Value-add, by contrast, leverages existing income while pursuing upside through repositioning.
What building formats do you develop?
We deliver tilt-wall distribution centers, smaller-format metal buildings, and flex/light manufacturing facilities depending on market demand.
How do you mitigate construction risk?
Through disciplined site selection, tenant pre-leasing, and public-private partnerships such as performance agreements that support infrastructure costs.
Where do you invest?
Primarily the Texas Triangle — Houston, Dallas–Fort Worth, Austin, and San Antonio — with selective suburban submarkets where demand exceeds supply.
Looking at land for industrial development?
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