ATLAS Exchange, a project planned for a 38-acre parcel in Mesa by Scottsdale-based ATLAS Capital Partners with Hawkins Development Company, breaks with traditional land-usage development with its low-coverage building designs with large, secured and screened yards, offering operational flexibility to an increasingly diverse Arizona industrial market. “This style of product is virtually nonexistent in metro Phoenix, yet is in high demand with the ever-evolving industrial landscape,” says ATLAS CEO Chris Walton.
The surge in demand for low-coverage development and industrial outdoor storage (IOS) uses stems from a simple reality: Many businesses need land for storage more than they need a building, Walton explains. “Fleet operators, logistics and distribution companies, contractors and subcontractors, and suppliers all need room to move, stage and store. As e-commerce, infrastructure, U.S. onshoring and manufacturing and last-mile delivery continue to grow, these types of flexible sites have become essential.”
Low-coverage industrial development works because it delivers operational flexibility at a lower cost, which, Walton notes, “Is something that many traditional assets can’t do.” Building rents are, in many cases, five to seven times greater than direct land square footage pricing. Under a low-coverage regime, the tenant is able to use its land for operations that don’t require under-roof building space. As a result, they pay on the land square footage (plus whatever building square footage the tenant occupies) at a significant discount compared to an all-under-roof rent scenario. “Low-coverage developments also tend to have lower capex, attract longer-term tenants and require less tenant improvement work,” Walton adds. “That combination makes them both more resilient and more efficient, especially in uncertain economic conditions.”
ATLAS Exchange serves single-tenant users seeking a strong identity through their building and operational flexibility through dedicated yard space. This includes myriad occupiers in the Arizona ecosystem, from logistics to telecommunications and contractors to equipment suppliers. In each case, tenants share a requirement for differentiated product that provides optimal circulation and flexible storage via large, fully paved, lit and secured yards.
“We’ve seen strong demand and performance for IOS in nearly every market across the country,” Walton relates. “Our tenants range from transportation companies to utility providers to contractors who need vehicle and equipment storage and outdoor operational space. Class A low-coverage development is not a common application. There is a sliver of the industrial landscape that is looking for what we call high-design, institutional-quality IOS that places functionality, access and scale at the forefront. Atlas Exchange delivers exactly that.”
Located at 4140 S. Signal Butte Rd. in Mesa, Arizona, ATLAS Exchange will span four freestanding buildings ranging from 40,000 to 100,000 square feet. Design plans include top-tier finishes in an amenity-rich environment with shaded ramadas and pickleball courts. The site sits within Eastmark, one of the top master planned communities in the nation offering a mix of award-winning residential, retail, restaurant and industrial development. It enjoys proximity to the Loop 202 and Mesa Gateway Airport, in an industrial market peppered with industry giants such as Meta, Apple, Google, Amazon, Boeing and more.
Construction on ATLAS Exchange is slated to begin in the third quarter of 2025. Build-to-suit opportunities are also available. Early lease negotiations are already underway, with several tenant commitments nearing completion. Pat Harlan and Steve Larsen of JLL serve as the project’s exclusive leasing brokers and represented both ATLAS and the property seller, Brookfield Properties, in the land transaction.
Photos courtesy of ATLAS Exchange
