Investments support the next generation of industry

Business Journals

2 days ago

Manufacturing and industry have been driving forces throughout San Leandro's more than 150-year history. Tractor engines, canned goods, calculators, and breakfast cereals are among the many products made here over the years, and the city's industrial areas remain the backbone of its local economy.
Recognizing this, San Leandro's economic development strategy includes goals to preserve its industrial districts and support new construction and investments in infrastructure. Continued investment in the industrial area helps to attract and retain vital value-add businesses and support the jobs, transportation, and services of today and tomorrow.
PROLOGIS AND THE POWER OF INNOVATION
Among the key players contributing to this vision is Prologis, a leading logistics real estate company with more than 30 properties in San Leandro. Recently, it has been working with the City to redevelop an outdated, 60-year-old building at 1345 Doolittle Drive, transforming it into a future-forward industrial facility known as Prologis Nexus.
'The property offers excellent access to major transportation corridors as well as a strong workforce and customer base, making it ideal for industrial and manufacturing businesses,' said Prologis Vice President and Investment Officer Janet Galvez. 'Further, with a clear entitlement process, Prologis was able to quickly transform the underutilized building into a LEED Platinum-certified, Class A industrial facility. The modern design meets the requirements of today's tenants, supporting the San Leandro business community and creating local jobs.'
By building on the existing foundation and using walls and other features of the prior building, as well as other sustainable building practices, the project reduced embodied carbon emissions by 45% compared to what would occur with a completely new building. The lot has 14 electric vehicle chargers and has the infrastructure in place to add more than 100 additional chargers. It is solar-ready, utilizes LED lighting with dynamic controls, and has low-carbon concrete throughout.
The revamped Nexus facility spans 266,000 square feet, roughly 3.5 times larger than the average industrial building footprint in San Leandro, and also includes 9,500 square feet of Class A office space. This makes it ideal for businesses seeking not only more space but also the ability to consolidate their operations under one roof. Another key highlight is its above-market power capacity.
'The building retained 6,200 amps of power, significantly above the typical 4,000 amps found in new construction,' Galvez said. 'This enhanced power capacity is especially valuable for businesses in the food processing, cold storage, manufacturing, and automated distribution sectors.'
GATE510 TURNS STORAGE SPACE INTO STARTUP ENGINE
When Blackstone Group and B3 Investors acquired the two-story Westgate Center along Davis Street in San Leandro, it was the property's existing retail tenants that had the most obvious appeal. Home Depot, Ross, and Burlington were among the established tenants anchoring the first floor of the site's main building.
The second floor, on the other hand, was crying out for a new plan, said B3 Investors Asset Manager Sean Martin. More than three football fields long, it was segmented into over 100 suites with 10,000 amps of power, housing artists, manufacturing, and office tenants, as well as warehouse and storage space.
'We knew we had something special,' Martin said. 'It was an opportunity to convert many of the legacy warehouse spaces into higher-density uses perfect for R&D startups.'Fast forward to today, and the second floor of that building is the focal point of a trailblazing adaptive reuse project.
Now known as Gate510, the property was built in the 1940s as a Chrysler Dodge manufacturing plant. In the 1960s, Caterpillar began making tractors there. In the 1980s, it became a shopping center. In 2014, thanks in part to San Leandro's Lit San Leandro fiber optic network, the transformation began toward providing incubator and maker spaces for a wide range of scientists, creators, and visionaries. In 2019, B3 Investors bought 1933 Davis St. and later the two adjacent buildings, making a 1.1 million-square-foot advanced manufacturing and R&D campus with retail amenities.
Today, the three-building campus is home to a diverse community of industries. The second floor of 1933 Davis St. now houses an entrepreneurial ecosystem with businesses working in such fields as material science, robotics, clean tech, biotech, and more. The buildings at 2010 and 2020 Williams St. offer larger footprints for tenants in production, such as 21st Amendment Brewery, Coreshell, Lyten, and Air Protein.
Bringing Gate510 to life required more than just vision and investment. The City of San Leandro played a pivotal role in supporting the project.
'There is a lot of TLC that goes into buying a building that is 70 to 80 years old,' Martin said. 'The City was on board with the value-add proposition of what we were trying to do. We had a clear path of communication for getting permits signed off on. Having a transparent relationship with the City has really been helpful in getting these spaces built and getting tenants moved in on time.'
One of the defining characteristics of Gate510's adaptive reuse is its cohesive design, which unites three separate buildings into a seamless campus.
The structures maintain their original exterior facade, preserving the architectural character of the neighborhood. But step through the front doors, and the real magic of the redevelopment reveals itself in interiors featuring high ceilings, bright open spaces, and configurations perfect for research labs, clean rooms, and all sorts of creative pursuits.
Tenants benefit from the flexibility to grow their businesses within Gate510, whether they are newly spun-out ventures from academic institutions or seasoned companies transitioning to full-scale manufacturing. Companies can start in as little as 1,000 square feet and add on as their business evolves.
'From a real estate investment perspective, we're not trying to tear a building down and, build a new one, and charge ridiculous rents,' Martin said. 'There is value in keeping that architectural vintage look in these buildings and then repurposing them.'
LOOKING AHEAD
With partners like Prologis and B3 Investors, the City continues to chart a path for preserving industrial districts and enhancing infrastructure.
In the coming years, the City plans to conduct an assessment of major industrial opportunity sites to help prepare them to for future development. It also is looking to partner with industrial developers, tenants, and property owners to plan for the future electrical infrastructure needs of key industrial sites — a key need of growing businesses — and jointly advocate for increased electrical service to meet projected electrical demand.