A Japanese transport and engineering company wants to build its third refrigerated storage facility in the South Bay neighborhood of Wilmington.
Konoike-Pacific California Inc., a subsidiary of the Konoike Group, filed plans on Tuesday for the 55,000-square-foot facility. The building would stretch along N. McFarland Avenue from East E Street to East F Street, directly next door to another Konoike cold storage and shipping facility.
The company needs city approval to build to a requested height of 54 feet, nine feet over the 45 feet allowed by zoning.
Konoike specializes in logistics, including temperature-controlled storage and transportation services in the United States. It also is involved in manufacturing and engineering in Japan. It operates one other facility in Wilmington, as well as one further north in South Gate.
The Wilmington site is comprised of a series of lots that are mostly vacant. The development would require demolishing a 3,800-square-foot commercial building along N. McFarlane Avenue. The property has been owned by the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles since 2007, according to property records.
South Bay’s industrial market is red hot, giving landlords the pick of the litter when it comes to tenants. In some cases, landlords are booting out existing tenants when leases expire to make way for major national and Fortune 500 companies. Demand for modern Class A industrial properties are driving up demand — and prices — for Class B and Class C properties as well.