Partners kickstart industrial project in development-hungry Flagler County

A little more than one month after winning a subsidy from Flagler County aimed at luring developers, partners Erlene Thomas and Jack Beutlich have reportedly closed on the land they need to build a new spec industrial project.

The Palm Coast Observer reported that Thomas and Beutlich, operating under their company Beutlich Development, bought four acres in Bunnell for roughly $340,000 are now moving forward with their plan to build a 20,000-square-foot industrial building at the southwest corner of U.S. 1 and Otis Stone Hunter Road.

ParkSide Realty will handle leasing for the project, which is expected to break ground this year and open its doors in early 2018.

Flagler County’s industrial market has been strapped for available space, the Observer reported, which makes it difficult for county officials to woo industrial companies into moving.

County officials hope that this development will help drive other builders into Flagler County and spur a boon in jobs, the Observer reported. Part of that initiative came in the form of a $90,000 incentive to Beutlich, whose project represents an investment of $1.7 million, according to county documents.

Industrial real estate has been a hot market in Florida over the past year, especially in Miami-Dade County, where a number of spec projects are underway totalling millions of square feet.

Similarly to Flagler County, a lack of available space has helped keep vacancy rates low and rents on an upward trajectory. [Palm Coast Observer] — Sean Stewart-Muniz