Larkspur Storage, a portfolio company of Staple Street Capital, has sold two self storage facilities in Belleville, Ill., and Opelika, Ala., totaling 159,800 rentable square feet. Both assets are redevelopments.
The Belleville property was a former Walmart that the company acquired in 2019, with plans to transform the asset into a self storage facility. The building had been vacant for more than 10 years. That same year, the property became subject to a $4.1 million construction loan, originated by First-Citizens Bank & Trust Co., with a maturity date set for 2024, according to Yardi Matrix data. The facility was originally built in 1993 and the self storage conversion was finalized in 2020.
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The 96,148-rentable-square-foot facility, which opened under the CubeSmart brand, is a three-story building that sits on 11.8 acres and offers climate-controlled units, ranging from 25 to 400 square feet. Amenities include video surveillance, gated and drive-up access, RV and boat parking, online bill payment and access to dollies and carts. Located at 120 Carlyle Plaza Drive, the property is less than 20 miles from downtown St. Louis and is one of the 12 available within a 3-mile radius, offering residents 11 rentable square feet per capita.
The 63,652-rentable-square-foot Opelika property was a former retail plaza, which Larkspur acquired in 2020, when the building was 85 percent vacant or occupied by short-term tenants. The asset was originally completed in 1986 and the storage conversion was finalized in 2022. The one-story building offers climate-controlled units, ranging from 25 to 300 square feet and offers amenities such as video surveillance, contactless renting, on-site manager, gated access and parking for boats and RVs. Located at 710 Columbus Parkway on 7.9 acres, the property is less than 30 miles from Columbus, Ga., and is one of the six available within a 3-mile radius, offering residents 27.7 rentable square feet of storage space per capita.
Opportunities for self storage conversions
Self storage investors are seeking opportunities to redevelop vacant buildings. Several such projects have recently been finalized or are currently underway.
Earlier this summer for instance, United Storage 360 LLC received a $5.5 million bridge loan from Red Oak Capital Holdings for the acquisition and conversion of a vacated Kmart Store in Englewood, Ohio. Plans call for the property’s transformation into a 60,000-square-foot storage facility set to operate under the Extra Space Storage brand. Phoenix Investors also announced plans to convert a former call center building in Menasha, Wis. Scheduled for delivery in early 2024, the facility will operate under the Store Here Self Storage brand.
As for recently completed projects, Arcland Property Co. opened a 102,580-square-foot facility in Hanover, Pa., in July. A former Weis grocery store, the property had been vacant since early 2000s. At the beginning of this month, Inland Private Capital Corp., in partnership with Devon Self Storage, completed a self storage conversion in Warren, Mich. The two-story building previously served as a manufacturing facility.
