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Venture Pays $530M for Fifth Busiest Open Air Retail Center
By Richard Berger | March 13, 2026 | GlobeST
A venture led by Redwood West and Panattoni has acquired Victoria Gardens, a 1.2 million-square-foot lifestyle center in the Inland Empire, from Brookfield Properties for $530 million.
The venture partnered with Prime Finance and Prism Places on the major transaction in Southern California's Inland Empire region. An Ares Real Estate fund provided debt financing for the deal.
Located in Rancho Cucamonga, California, the site welcomes 14.7 million visitors annually, ranking it as the fifth-busiest open-air lifestyle center in the U.S.
At 98 percent leased, Victoria Gardens is home to 160 specialty retailers and restaurants, including Apple, Lululemon, Chanel, Sephora, Nike, Sweetgreen, Macy's and Fleming's Steakhouse.
The new ownership plans to invest more than $50 million in the property.
"We are excited about the once-in-a-generation opportunity to acquire the preeminent outdoor retail center of the Inland Empire," Colby Cyburt, managing partner of Redwood West, told GlobeSt.com.
"This iconic property stands out as a high-performing asset with exceptional foot traffic, a diverse mix of premium tenants, and strong community ties in a rapidly growing market. We plan to enhance the property through significant capital improvements to the main town square, common areas, landscaping, and signage, ensuring it remains a vibrant destination for shoppers and locals alike."
Victoria Gardens generates more than $1,100 per square foot in retail sales and serves as a central gathering place for the community. The center features the Victoria Gardens Cultural Center that encompasses a public library where the Randall Lewis Second Story and Beyond® immersive discovery space is located, as well as a performance venue.
Its location is within a 25-minute drive of 2.2 million residents. Rancho Cucamonga has an average household income of $138,000, ranking 22 percent above the national average. Additionally, household income growth in the area is projected to be nine percent over the next five years.
Still, residents have a relatively moderate cost of living compared to nearby coastal cities, resulting in disposable incomes 10% higher than the Los Angeles County average, according to market researchers.
Industrial Rents Climb as Port Uncertainty Looms
By Kristen Smithberg | February 26, 2026 | GlobeST
U.S. industrial markets are starting 2026 with solid rent growth, but lingering trade and geopolitical uncertainties are weighing on some port-driven sectors, according to the latest Commercial Cafe national industrial report.
Concerns include looming tariffs on Chinese-built port cranes, Panama Canal geopolitical maneuvers and the Supreme Court's reversal of Liberation Day duties, all of which inject uncertainty into a sector that relies on stability. These challenges follow an already difficult 2025 for U.S. shipping, which tested both tenants and investors.
At the national level, in-place rents for industrial space averaged $8.94 per square foot at the end of January, a 5.1% year-over-year increase and a seven-cent rise from December. Atlanta led the nation in rent growth with an 8% increase over the past 12 months, followed by Miami and Tampa at 7.4% and Philadelphia at 6.8%.
Leases signed in the past year averaged $10.07 per square foot, $1.17 above national in-place rents, reflecting strong demand for modern and well-located industrial space.
Vacancy rates nationwide reached 9.6% last month, up 160 basis points from January 2025. While several markets are approaching equilibrium, others continue to see significant year-over-year increases in vacancy, said CommercialCafe. Currently, 355.7 million square feet of industrial space is under construction, largely unchanged from early 2025, signaling a period of stabilization as the industry continues to "rest and digest" after the previous supply glut.
Data center development is contributing to industrial construction activity, driven by tech giants' investments in AI and cloud infrastructure. In 2025, data center construction totaled 30.8 million square feet, with more than half concentrated in five markets: Washington, D.C./Northern Virginia (6.1 million square feet), Dallas-Fort Worth (3.2 million), Phoenix (2.9 million), Atlanta (2.8 million) and Columbus, Ohio (2.6 million). These hubs continue to dominate new data center development, underscoring the sector's growing role in driving industrial growth, CommercialCafe said.
Regionally, California's Central Valley remains the West's most affordable industrial leasing market, though new lease premiums of $2 per square foot indicate rising costs for tenants. In the Midwest, Columbus, Ohio, has 12.2 million square feet of industrial space underway, translating to a 3.7% inventory expansion — the second-largest nationwide.
Southern markets show mixed results: Houston's vacancy rate declined year-over-year, while Charlotte and Tampa continue to experience rising vacancies. In the Northeast, New Jersey recorded the largest industrial sales volume so far in 2026 at $372 million, with Boston surpassing $100 million.
Overall, January industrial sales totaled $4.1 billion nationwide, averaging $166 per square foot. Los Angeles led Western markets with $356 million in transactions and recorded the largest industrial sale so far this year – the $123-million purchase of the South Bay Distribution Center.
Inland Markets Are Now Leading Industrial Growth
By Kristen Smithberg | March 24, 2026 | GlobeST
The U.S. industrial landscape is undergoing a major reshaping, with logistics users moving large-scale distribution away from coastal gateways and into lower-cost inland hubs, according to new research from Cushman & Wakefield. Port-proximate markets captured just 19% of total U.S. net absorption in 2025, their lowest share in 15 years, marking a significant departure from long-standing coastal-focused strategies.
Overall, industrial net absorption rose 16.3% year-over-year, but inland markets outpaced their coastal counterparts. Inland hubs recorded 21% growth in demand, compared with just 2% for port-adjacent markets.
"Industrial occupiers are redesigning logistics networks around cost, resilience, and flexibility," Jason Price, Americas Head of Logistics & Industrial Research at Cushman & Wakefield.
"Port proximity remains important for speed-to-market and cross-dock functions, but large-scale distribution activity is increasingly shifting inland where occupiers can access lower costs, more land, and modern facilities."
Rising costs in coastal markets are accelerating the shift, the report noted. Industrial rents at port hubs climbed 65% between 2019 and 2023 and remain roughly 33% above the national average. For occupiers seeking facilities larger than 500,000 square feet, inland locations offer a more viable path to scale.
Global trade dynamics are also reshaping industrial demand. Imports from China fell roughly 30% year-over-year in 2025 as companies diversified sourcing to Southeast Asia and Mexico to reduce tariff exposure and supply-chain risk. Mexico, the U.S.'s largest trading partner, exported $534 billion in goods last year, much of it moving through land ports such as Laredo and El Paso, feeding inland logistics corridors tied to major population centers, the report said.
Despite the inland surge, port markets remain relevant. Cargo volumes at the nation's 10 largest maritime ports declined just 0.3% last year, underscoring their continued role in global trade. Cushman & Wakefield expects demand in many port markets to stabilize as development pipelines shrink and supply-chain strategies continue to evolve.
"Port markets remain strategically important, but investors and occupiers are becoming far more selective," Price said.
"Building quality, infrastructure access, and proximity to population centers increasingly matter more than simply being located near a port."
The report concludes that while trade policy uncertainty may create short-term volatility, the long-term fundamentals supporting industrial real estate demand remain intact, particularly for modern logistics facilities that support automation, AI-enabled operations and high-throughput distribution.
