C&S Wholesale Grocers Leases 68,020-SF Freezer Facility

CHESTER, NY-C&S Wholesale Grocers Inc. has signed a lease for a 68,020-sf freezer facility at 14 Elizabeth Dr., part of the Chester Industrial Park complex here.

The deal, reported by the brokerage firm Binswanger/Klatskin, expands the Brattlleboro, VT-based grocery wholesaler’s presence at the Chester Industrial Park. The firm also occupies another building at the complex that totals approximately 150,000 sf, according to Binswanger/Klatskin officials. C&S Wholesale Grocers also has operations in the City of Newburgh in Orange County, N.Y.

Executive Vice President David Knee and Associate Chris Hile of the brokerage firm’s Teterboro, NJ office represented the owner, CSI, a wholly owned subsidiary of ProLogis, a major provider of temperature-controlled supply chain management and logistics services. CSI had operated the facility for the Grand Union supermarket chain. However, when the grocer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, CSI saw the facility as an under-performing asset and sought out a tenant. CSI owns a freight distribution network of more than 30 facilities in 15 states.

The deal with C&S Wholesale Grocers, which acquired some Grand Union locations in bankruptcy proceedings, also includes three acres of land adjacent to the 14 Elizabeth Dr. property. C&S Wholesale Grocers is the third largest wholesaler in the U.S., and employs more than 7,000 workers. The firm generates annual sales in excess of $8 billion.

Binswanger/Klatskin’s Hile noted that the freezer facility will be used for storage and distribution purposes. The one-story property is climate controlled and features 35,770 sf of space in a environment which has an average temperature of –10 degrees Fahrenheit; 12,160 sf of space (used for storing ice cream) at -20 degrees; 10,420 sf of dock area or transition space at +35 degrees and approximately 9,670 sf at room temperature for office and locker room space.

Binswanger/Klatskin, which is headquartered in Philadelphia, is a member of Chesterton Blumenauer Binswanger, a global full-service real estate firm with more than 160 offices worldwide.