Clarion Partners JV Scores $210M for Inland Empire Project

Image by Marcin Jozwiak via Pixabay

A joint venture between Real Estate Development Associates and Clarion Partners has secured $210 million in construction financing for the development of Ontario Ranch Business Park, a 160-acre, 3.2 million-square-foot industrial campus underway in Ontario, Calif.

The 3-year, non-recourse loan funds the project’s first phase, slated to comprise 1.7 million square feet across seven buildings. JLL Capital Markets arranged the floating-rate, interest-only financing on behalf of the borrower. JPMorgan Chase was the lender, according to San Bernardino County records.

Ontario Ranch Business Park Phase I is taking shape on a 84-acre parcel within the Ontario Ranch master-planned community. The joint venture paid $86.1 million for the development site in 2020, public records show.

Upon completion, Phase I will have clear heights ranging from 30 to 40 feet, 287 loading positions and 775 parking stalls. Its largest facility, which is planned to have 1.1 million square feet, is already preleased to The Home Depot. This particular building is anticipated to deliver by the end of 2022, according to CommercialEdge data.

A sought-after location in the heart of the Inland Empire

Situated at the southeast corner of Eucaplyptus and Euclid avenues, the development site has direct access to Interstate 15. Chino Airport is directly south of the location, while Ontario International Airport is 7 miles north. The property neighbors the 124-acre Ontario Ranch Logistics Center, another industrial campus developed by the REDA-Clarion partnership.

JLL Managing Director Brian Torp, Director Peter Thompson, Associate Samuel Godfrey and Analyst Jordan Leake formed the Debt Advisory team that represented the borrower in the transaction. According to CommercialEdge data, CBRE and Lee & Associates provide leasing services for the development.

Inland Empire continues to be a hotbed for industrial development. According to the latest CommercialEdge report, nearly 34 million square feet were under construction in the metro as of May, representing 5.6 percent of stock.