A 14-acre portion of the Southern Mills property in Royal Palm Beach has been sold, according to Cushman and Wakefield, which handled the transaction. The property is located at 700 103rd Avenue in Royal Palm Beach, west of I-95 and Palm Beach International Airport. [more]

A 13-acre tract in Pompano Beach has been sold by Howard White/Unaflex to Weeks Robinson Properties, which plans to build a Class A industrial spec development on the site, according to Cushman and Wakefield, which handled the transaction on behalf of the seller. The industrial project would include a 200,000-square-foot distribution facility called the Pompano Distribution Center. Weeks Robinson plans to break ground immediately, with tenant occupancy projected for 2013. Cushman’s team included Rick Etner, Sky Groden, Chris Metzger, Christopher Thompson and Julie Miller. — Alexander Britell

Prologis Gratigny

Perez Trading has signed a deal to lease 280,601 square feet at Prologis Gratigny Industrial Park, making it South Florida’s largest industrial lease thus far in 2012. The deal comes just a few weeks after the previous 2012 high, a 200,214-square-foot lease by AeroTurbine in Broward. [more]

Vicki Baisden

Cushman & Wakefield has hired Vicki Baisden as the South Florida city lead of the company’s Corporate Occupier & Investor Services division, the firm announced today. Baisden, the current Miami-Dade president of Building Owners and Managers, was previously the general manager and leasing broker for the Hines portfolio of Class A office buildings in Coral Gables. She has also served as president of property management for Stiles Corporation, where she was involved on projects including Miami’s Sun Trust International Plaza and Las Olas Center 350 and 450.
— Alexander Britell

Cushman and Wakefield has been named the exclusive leasing agent for three industrial buildings in the South Florida I-75 Distribution Center in Broward County. The properties, which are owned by IndCor Properties, total 737,000 square feet. Cushman’s industrial team of Chris Metzger, Rick Etner, Sky Groden, Christopher Thomson and Julie Miller will handle the leasing. The Class A business park is located on South Flamingo Road and Miramar Parkway in Fort Lauderdale. The largest building of the three, 3701 South Flamingo Road, totals 545,000 square feet. — Alexander Britell

Cushman & Wakefield’s Wayne Ramoski and Gian Rodriguez secured more than $19.3 million in lease transactions in the first half of 2012, the firm announced today. The total comes from 16 industrial deals in Miami totaling 658,008 square feet. The largest transaction was a 145,855-square-foot lease by American Fine Foods at 6905 NW 25th Street in Miami. “We expect continued activity in the second half of 2012 and are already seeing an uptick in users looking to buy in South Florida,” Rodriguez said. — Alexander Britell

Atlanta-based Weeks Robinson has launched a new industrial project in Pompano Beach. The Pompano Beach Distribution Center development, which is located at 3901 NE 12th Avenue, will total 202,000 square feet. It will accommodate users of 20,000 square feet and up. Cushman and Wakefield’s Rick Etner, Sky Groden and Christopher Metzger will be handling leasing on the project, which is being designed by Randall Paulson Architecture. — Alexander Britell

Cushman & Wakefield has been named the exclusive leasing agent for a combination of six listings owned by EastGroup Properties that total 706,714 square feet. The listings are spread across 16 industrial warehouse buildings. [more]

Absorption in Broward County posted a four-fold increase in the first half of 2012 compared to the previous year, according to a report from Cushman & Wakefield. There was a total of 779,119 square feet of take-up in the county, the highest reported first-half absorption activity in six years. [more]

An industrial building in West Palm Beach

An improved business environment has led Palm Beach County’s industrial market to see a one-percentage-point drop in vacancy in the last year, according to a report from Cushman & Wakefield. Vacancy in the county dropped to 7.8 percent in the second quarter of 2012 from an 8.8-percent rate in the second quarter of 2011. While direct asking rents fell by 60 basis points in the same period, the report projects them to increase in the next 12 months. Leasing has risen 24 percent in Palm Beach County, according to the report, with a total of 753,373 square feet of activity in the second quarter. — Alexander Britell