At The Top - September 2003

CENTRA Properties

Developing New Projects in Southern Nevada

by Allen Grant

Developing nearly 2 million square feet of industrial and retail space during the next 12 to 18 months, CENTRA Properties continues its Southern Nevada growth spurt after just two years of operations.

"We understand the variables involved in finding a great site, and that’s what we’re doing," said James Stuart, president and chief operating officer of CENTRA Properties. "Using our resources, we’re finding better locations, paying less for the land and building for less. And, that creates better conditions to attract better tenants."

A commercial real estate developer based in Henderson, CENTRA Properties co-develops projects with Sacramento-based Panattoni Developments. The privately-owned CENTRA Properties is supported by local and national firms comprised of specialists in construction, finance, accounting and control, public relations, marketing, risk management and asset/property management and leasing.

According to Stuart, CENTRA Properties creates financial partnerships with each individual project, allowing the company to be more responsive and flexible to marketplace changes.

Co-founded with Ken Sullivan III, CENTRA Properties is trying to utilize its Las Vegas experience, background and resources to build superior commercial developments, said Stuart. "Ken and I have been Las Vegas residents for a number of years and have developed some great relationships [with people who] understand local issues and Las Vegas’ uniqueness in the market," explained Stuart. "Because of those relationships, we can outsource several subsets of any development, finding the best people to work with."

CENTRA Properties has five developments in various project stages in the Las Vegas Valley, including Siena Town Center, Henderson’s Mahachamu Marketplace and North Las Vegas’ CENTRA Craig Distribution Center I and II. Stuart cites the 95 percent occupancy rate and tenant roster including Wal-Mart, Worldpool and RC Wiley at CENTRA Craig Distribution Center I and II as evidence of the company’s recent results. "It’s really outperforming our expectations."

Despite increasingly high vacancy rates in Las Vegas’ office market, CENTRA Properties’ southwest Las Vegas project – CENTRA Point – should break ground this fall with its 75,000-square-foot first phase and expects to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2004. The 21-acre, 300,000-square-foot development off Interstate 215 at Sunset Road and Durango Drive features six buildings with 40,000 square feet to 60,000 square feet per unit.

The company’s largest and most elaborate project to date recently broke ground with high expectations. CENTRA Park, an upscale master-planned business park located at the south end of the Las Vegas Strip at Sunset Road, stretches to nearly one million square feet. It offers easy access and visibility from McCarran International Airport, Interstate 15 and the I-215 Beltway. "There’s not a location better than this (in all of Las Vegas)," Stuart said. "This could be the city’s premier business park." Stuart expects the project to be completed by the first quarter of next year.

CENTRA Park’s design, according to Stuart, offers its tenants flexible space sizes to accommodate a wide range of businesses from retail and office to warehouse and manufacturing. "This project really exemplifies our company’s overall goal," he said.

Responsible for development analysis at CENTRA, Stuart said accessibility and cost are the two key aspects of finding the right projects to develop. "We work hard to find great locations and even better cost savings to increase the profitability and attractiveness of each project."

Prior to CENTRA, Stuart teamed with Mike Mixer to form Stuart Mixer, a commercial real estate firm in Las Vegas. Stuart Mixer eventually linked up with Oncor International before merging in 1998 with Colliers International Inc., a large Boston-based company with real estate offices spanning the globe. After just a short time with Colliers, Stuart stepped down at the end of 1999 to pursue other interests.