Bridge Investment buys Inland Empire truck terminal for $6M per acre

Freight hauler gets $83M for site near rail, freeway links in Rialto

Bridge Investment Group CEO Jonathan Slager and 2650 South Willow Avenue (Bridge Investment Group, LoopNet, iStock)
Bridge Investment Group CEO Jonathan Slager and 2650 South Willow Avenue (Bridge Investment Group, LoopNet, iStock)

UPDATED, July 15, 2022, 11:21 a.m.: Bridge Investment Group has bought a trucking terminal in the Inland Empire for $83 million.

The Salt Lake City-based investment firm bought the 14-acre site in Rialto through its Bridge Logistics Properties unit, according to an announcement earlier this week.

Bridge did not disclose the price of the deal, but public property records filed with San Bernardino County show the company paid roughly $6 million per acre — one of the higher prices the Inland Empire has seen for an industrial property.

Freight company TFI International sold the trucking terminal at 2650 South Willow Avenue, which it also occupies. It’s unclear whether the company will lease back the space and continue to occupy the property.

The trucking terminal includes a 41,000-square-foot terminal with 76 dock doors and 6.7 acres of yard space for trailer parking, as well as a truck wash.

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“Truck terminal inventory is heavily constrained by entitlement headwinds and therefore inventory is limited,” Paul Jones, a managing director at Bridge Logistics Properties, said in a statement.

When both the ports of L.A. and Long Beach struggled with congestion last year, trucking companies started to look for space to store goods on land — trucking terminals with yard storage. Investors quickly capitalized on the space, as industrial rents soared, all of which is “creating a backdrop for further value appreciation,” Jones added.

The terminal is located minutes away from the I-10 and the I-215, making it attractive for freight transportation.

Other investors are looking to build warehouses in the city of Rialto. Earlier this month, USAA Real Estate and McDonald Property Group announced they would build a 1.8 million-square-foot warehouse for a contract manufacturer that makes footwear and clothing for Skechers, Puma and other brands.

A previous version of this story said Bridge Investment Group paid $12 million per acre for the property. The firm paid $6 million.