CUMBERLAND – The Economic Development Foundation of Rhode Island Inc., owner and developer of Highland Corporate Park, today announced it has committed to proceeding with the Cumberland Commerce Center project in the industrial park.
“The lack of supply in Rhode Island of quality, flexible buildings has been discussed at great length by the real estate brokerage and economic development sectors,” said Marcel Valois, chairman of the nonprofit economic development corporation. “The EDFRI has decided to respond to this need by developing Cumberland Commerce Center.”
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“Access to quality commercial sites is central to Rhode Island’s economic growth,” agreed Saul Kaplan, executive director of the R.I. Economic Development Corporation. “EDFRI’s development of the Cumberland Commerce Center represents an important and much-needed infusion of new commercial space into the market.
“I am certain that this development will be an invaluable asset to Highland Corporate Park and businesses looking to grow in Rhode Island.”
Cumberland Mayor David S. Iwuc also lauded today’s announcement. “From day one that I took office, I have been working with the EDFRI to encourage the location of quality companies and quality development in Highland,” Iwuc said. “This announcement reflects the kind of investment that I have been encouraging. The Cumberland Commerce Center project will provide an invaluable location resource to attract more quality companies to Cumberland and Northern Rhode Island.”
Cumberland Commerce Center, to be developed on Lots 23 and 25 in the Highland Corporate Park, is to encompass four buildings totaling up to 94,000 square feet of leasable space. Scott A. Gibbs, the EDFRI’s president, said the buildings will be designed to accommodate national and regional companies seeking sales and service facilities for their southern New England customers.
“The Cumberland Commerce Center project has been under review by the EDFRI Board of Directors for over a year,” Gibbs said. “The EDFRI Board voted at its early November meeting to proceed with the project’s design and permitting.”
The nonprofit said it has engaged New England Construction Co. and Narragansett Improvement Co. to construct the center. The development team also includes Vision3 Architects and Crossman Engineering.
According to Gibbs, the conceptual site and building design has been completed and final design and permitting stages have commenced. Construction is to begin in March, with occupancy possible by August.
The EDFRI has already begun to market space in the center. A lease proposal has been submitted to a national company and information has been distributed to local commercial real estate brokers.
“Cumberland Commerce Center offers a business location that is unrivaled in Rhode Island,” declared Valois, the nonprofit’s chairman. “Highland [Corporate Park] is strategically located in the southern New England market and offers a highly attractive environment that reinforces the images of quality companies and creates a pleasant work environment for their employees. Highland’s value to such companies has been validated by corporate leaders such as Johnson & Johnson, Procter and Gamble, Novartis, and Tiffany & Co., all of whom have established offices or facilities in Highland.”
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The center’s tenants will benefit from a comprehensive property-tax stabilization ordinance recently extended by the Town of Cumberland, and from the site’s location in a Rhode Island Enterprise Zone, which offers tax credits to companies that create new jobs filled by Rhode Island residents.
Phase I of the project is being financed through a line of credit with a consortium of banks including Sovereign Bank, Bank Rhode Island and Freedom National Bank.
Gibbs said several possible equity partners have also expressed interest in participating in the project. He explained that, although the EDFRI has the capital to undertake the project, it remains open to equity partners as a means of leveraging the nonprofit’s capital. The total projected cost for complete build-out of the Cumberland Commerce Center is $6 million.
The EDFRI, owner and developer of Highland Corporate Park, is a nonprofit economic development corporation committed to the creation of quality jobs for Rhode Islanders through the attraction and retention of businesses. Its core business is real estate development. Additional information is available at www.edf-ri.com.
