1. Vacancy Rates Over Completions and Absorptions
6.0
7.0
8.0
9.0
10.0
11.0
12.0
13.0
14.0
15.0
16.0
3Q
08
4Q
08
1Q
09
2Q
09
3Q
09
4Q
09
1Q
10
2Q
10
3Q
10
4Q
10
1Q
11
Q2
11
Q3
11
Q4
11
Q1
12
Q2
12
Q3
12
Q4
12
Q1
13
(2,000,000)
(1,500,000)
(1,000,000)
(500,000)
0
500,000
1,000,000
1,500,000
2,000,000
2,500,000
Completions Absorptions Total Market Vacancy Rate
Industrial Trends Report
Greater Columbus Region
www.colliers.com/columbus
Market Flourishing, Despite Slow Start
Industrial Market Overview
The Columbus industrial market recorded its eighth consecutive quarter of positive absorption, as 213,265
square feet were absorbed this quarter. The vacancy rate now stands at 7.7 percent. Construction continues
to be strong as 1.3 million square feet of warehouse distribution space is underway. Southgate Corp.
finished construction on its speculative 50,000 square foot spec manufacturing building at 94 Integrity
Drive. Significant leases were signed by HD Supply at 6200 Commerce Center Drive for 437,256 square
feet, and S B Capital at 4851 Groveport Rd. for 132,100 square feet. Sears, Roebuck and Co. renewed
358,760 square feet of warehouse distribution space at 5765 Green Pointe Drive. Agellan Commercial REIT
purchased 3671-3699 Interchange Road (91,200 square feet) and 3949 Business Park Drive (74,558 square
feet) from Premier Courier Inc. for $7.7 million ($46 per square foot).
Forecasts and Reflection
• KTR Capital Partners, a private equity firm that has completed nearly $2 billion of acquisitions and
development since 2004, recently sold two warehouses in its portfolio to Welsh Property Trust. Creekside
XII, a 737,471 square foot warehouse distribution building, located at 3051 Creekside Parkway, sold for
$24.5 million ($33 per square foot). Air East I, a 754,000 square foot warehouse property located at 6766
Pontius Road sold for $22.5 million ($30 per square foot).
• Navarre announced it will expand its operations in Ohio by 500,000 square feet. Navarre selected
a site at 175 Heritage Drive, located in the Prologis Park 70 Etna complex in Licking County.
Hemmer Construction will begin construction on this 766,633 square foot warehouse build-to-suit
in the second quarter, and should be completed by the end of the year. As a result of the
improved economy and increased demand for bulk warehouse/distribution space, future build-to-
suit and speculative construction will be a big storyline for the Columbus industrial market in 2013.
Rental rates
Asking rental rates have
remained stable during the
beginning of 2013. A slight
uptick in warehouse/distribution
rates, and modest increases in
general industrial rates can be
attributed to falling vacancy
rates. There are now just 21
spaces of 20,000 square feet or
greater available in R&D/Flex
throughout Greater Columbus,
causing R&D/Flex rental rates
to significantly increase over the
past year as leasing remains
strong. Overall, concessions
continue to decrease as larger
distribution centers are in short
supply.
market indicators
Weighted Average REntal Rates
Rates for the Major Product Types
Q1
2013*
Q2
2013**
Vacancy
Net absorption
construction
Rental Rates —
*Actual change from previous quarter
**Projected change from previous quarter
Q1 2013 | Industrial
$0.00
$1.00
$2.00
$3.00
$4.00
$5.00
$6.00
$7.00
Q3
08
Q4
08
Q1
09
Q2
09
Q3
09
Q4
09
Q1
10
Q2
10
Q3
10
Q4
10
Q1
11
Q2
11
Q3
11
Q4
11
Q1
12
Q2
12
Q3
12
Q4
12
Q1
13
General Industrial R&D/Flex Warehouse/Dist.

2. Regional industrial economics
The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland reports at least
once a quarter in the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book
about the economic activity of the fourth district, which
includes the Columbus Metropolitan Statistical Area
(MSA). At the beginning of March, the Beige Book
reported that economic activity had grown at a modest
pace. Manufacturers reported that production output
and new orders were steady or up slightly during the
past quarter. Inventories are aligned with demand.
Capacity utilization rose slightly for steel producers;
other factories reported that rates were slightly below
their normal range.
Many reports on freight volume indicated that the
volume exceeded projections made late last year. The
industries driving transport demand are automotive,
construction, and shale gas. Shale gas activity
expanded at a robust pace. Little change was seen in
conventional oil and natural gas production, but drilling
is expected to pick up this spring and summer.
Nonresidential builders described current business
conditions as slowing compared to the fourth quarter
of last year. The stress of the fiscal cliff on government
budgets has choked the supply of projects. Contractors
are reporting substantially higher prices for building
materials. Projects receiving the strongest inquiries
are in the industrial manufacturing and distribution,
education, healthcare, and multi-family development.
Demand for commercial loans and refinancings have
slowed, but many investors continue to take advantage
of low interest rates that appear to be disappearing
sooner than later.
Employment
Ohio was ranked third in the country after gaining
50,000 manufacturing jobs from 2009 through
December 2012 according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics. However, the Central Ohio region reported
manufacturing employment of 65,200 employees in
February which was a decrease of nearly 500
employees from the past quarter. Over the last 12
months, the hottest manufacturing sectors for jobs
were transportation equipment, food manufacturing,
and plastics and polymers. Trade, transportation and
utilities employment declined by 3,500 employees in
February since December 2012. Over the past year
the industry has effectively seen a decrease of 1,500
employees, with a 70 basis point employment
downturn. Mining, logging and construction decreased
by 2,600 employees in February since December
2012, an overall 300 employee decrease over the past
year.
The Columbus industrial market consists
of 10 suburban submarkets and the
Central Business District. The total
inventory for the region is 212 million
square feet of space.
Market Activity
sales activity
Property Address sales date sale price size SF Grantor Grantee Price / Sf type submarket
6766 Pontius Road 1/25/2013 $22,450,000 754,000 KTR Capital Partners Welsh Property Trust $29.77 Warehouse Southeast
3051 Creekside Parkway 1/25/2013 $24,500,000 737,354 KTR Capital Partners Welsh Property Trust $33.22 Warehouse Southeast
6999-7029 Huntley Road 2/5/2013 $5,000,000 184,187 North Development Group CW Capital Asset Management $27.13 Flex/R&D North
3671 Interchange Road 1/25/2013 $4,200,000 91,200 Premier Courier Inc Agellan Capital $46.00 Flex/R&D West
3949 Business Park Drive 1/25/2013 $3,500,000 74,558 Premier Courier Inc Agellan Capital $46.00 Flex/R&D West
1341 Norton Avenue 3/7/2013 $1,300,000 56,860 1341 Norton Ltd LLC Grandview 1341 LLC $22.86 Light Industrial West
16710 Square Drive 1/29/2013 $1,000,000 53,464 CRJ Investments LLC RY-1 LLC $18.70 Flex/R&D Union
2222 South Third Street 3/6/2013 $1,000,000 53,006 Schuler Inc QPI Property Holdings LLC $18.86 Light Industrial Souteast
985-999 Goodale Boulevard 3/18/2013 $1,475,000 40,834 999 Goodale LLC Ogstutz Daimler LLC $36.12 Flex/R&D West
5075 Krieger Court 1/11/2013 $1,840,000 24,664 Vitran Express Inc Vitran Ohio LLC $74.60 Light Industrial Southwest
Union
County
Delaware
County
Licking
County
North
East
CBD
West
Southwest Southeast
Fairfield
County
Pickaway County
Madison
County
Lease activity
Property Address Lease Date Lease sf Lessee Asking price (NNN) type Submarket
6200 Commerce Center Drive 3/20/2013 437,256 HD Supply $3.25 Warehouse-Distribution Southeast
4851 Groveport Road 3/13/2013 132,100 S B Capital $1.75 Warehouse-Distribution Southeast
3000 Charter Street 1/1/2013 124,115 Ball Corporation $1.35 Bulk Warehouse West
3515-3595 Urbancrest Industrial Drive 2/28/2013 63,041 AY Manufacturing $3.75 Warehouse-Distribution Southwest
2221-2302 John Glenn Avenue 2/1/2013 58,056 Faro Logistics $2.50 Warehouse-Distribution Southeast
3024 Charter Street 1/1/2013 45,000 Newark Group $2.55 Bulk Warehouse West
5650 Green Pointe Drive 3/4/2013 45,000 Crown Cork & Seal $3.25 Bulk Warehouse Southeast
1736 Westbelt Drive 1/4/2013 30,024 General Wholesalers $2.80 Warehouse-Distribution West
2200 International Street 3/1/2013 20,800 Laird Plastics $3.25 Light Industrial West
p. 2 | Colliers International
research & forecast report | Q1 2013 | industrial | Greater Columbus Region

3. Construction
Team Gemini LLC, a developer based in
Orlando, announced it will build a
receiving center at a new landfill entry off
London Groveport Road to sort reusable
and recyclable material from incoming
loads of garbage. They will become the
anchor tenant in what will become a 340-
acre industrial park across the road, to be
named Gemini Synergy Center. The $300
million project would create over 300
jobs.
update Market Comparisons
Industrial market
Net Absorption Construction Asking Rental Rates
Submarket Total SF Vacant SF Vacancy % Current Quarter Year-to-date Current Completions WH/Dist R&D/Flex
CBD 5,335,716 405,386 7.6% 4,884 4,884 - $6.63
East 20,442,133 2,009,044 9.8% (244,531) (244,531) - $2.56 $5.27
Fairfield 6,114,387 66,755 1.1% (2,255) (2,255) - $4.00 $6.50
Licking 19,162,312 1,396,046 7.3% (50,000) (50,000) 50,000 $2.76
Madison 9,026,748 - 0.0% - - 450,000
North 16,814,944 1,291,345 7.7% (15,114) (15,114) - $4.36 $4.72
North Delaware 8,796,109 553,466 6.3% 9,100 9,100 - $3.33 $7.00
Pickaway 3,602,146 93,756 2.6% (9,506) (9,506) -
Southeast 64,163,813 7,237,271 11.3% 115,105 115,105 783,303 40,800 $2.79 $3.46
SOUTHWEST 17,512,083 976,080 5.6% 19,628 19,628 - $2.90 $3.38
Union 6,299,770 333,916 5.3% 73,664 73,664 - $6.46
West 34,873,110 2,094,230 6.0% 312,290 312,290 - $2.40 $4.27
TOTALS 212,366,316 16,457,295 7.7% 213,265 213,265 1,233,303 90,800 $2.76 $4.83
Net Absorption Construction Asking Rental Rates
Property Type Total SF Vacant SF Vacancy % Current Quarter Year-to-date Current Completions By Product Type
r&D/Flex 20,209,273 2,552,433 12.6% 34,103 34,103 20,800 $4.83
General industrial 70,071,075 3,491,356 5.0% (166,074) (166,074) 70,000 $3.22
Warehouse/
distribution
122,085,968 10,413,506 8.5% 345,236 345,236 1,233,303 $2.76
Totals 212,366,316 16,457,295 7.7% 213,265 213,265 1,233,303 90,800 $2.92
quarterly comparison and totals
Net Absorption Construction Asking Rental Rates
Quarter, year Total SF Vacant SF Vacancy % Current Quarter Year-to-date Current Completions ($)
Q4, 2012 211,821,516 16,517,649 7.8% 1,455,132 4,938,885 924,103 448,655 $2.99
Q3, 2012 211,027,622 19,227,318 9.1 757,254 3,461,253 1,259,655 - $2.87
Q2, 2012 213,192,579 21,359,885 10 1,430,866 2,703,999 425,000 900,000 $2.95
Q1, 2012 212,418,016 22,790,751 10.7 1,273,133 1,273,133 898,000 - $3.04
research & forecast report | Q1 2013 | Industrial | Greater Columbus Region
Colliers International | p. 3

4. Central Business District
The Central Business District (CBD) experienced
relatively insignificant positive absorption of 4,884
square feet in the first quarter. An owner/user sale of a
15,000 square foot flex building at 106 East Moler St.
kept the downtown submarket from experiencing
negative absorption after a new 14,000 square foot
vacancy at 1001 Kinnear Road. Absorption as a whole
has been strong for eight consecutive quarters in the
CBD, with just four spaces of 10,000 square feet vacant,
two of which have more than 100,000 square feet
available.
East
The submarkets comprising eastern Columbus are East
and Licking County. The Licking submarket recorded
50,000 square feet of negative absorption after
Southgate Corp. finished construction on its 50,000
square foot building at 94 Integrity Drive. The spec
manufacturing building has the ability to expand to
150,000 square feet, but further development on the site
has not been announced. The East submarket stumbled
in the first quarter as vacancy rates have increased 80
basis points to 9.8 percent. The submarket is still
significantly better off than previous years when vacancy
rates were lingering in the 20 percent range. Ball
Corporation vacated 250,000 square feet of
manufacturing space at 350 McCormick Boulevard, and
relocated into 124,115 square feet of warehouse space at
3000 Charter St. in the West submarket.
North
The submarkets comprising northern Columbus are
North and North Delaware. The North submarket
recorded 15,114 square feet of negative absorption as
Avnet vacated 52,870 square feet of flex space at 7465
Worthington Galena Rd., while Air Waves downsized by
45,842 square feet in their flex space at 7787 Graphics
Way. Atlas Butler purchased a 48,412 square foot
building at 4849 Evanswood Drive. The North Delaware
submarket recorded 9,100 square feet of positive
absorption that can be attributed to Maco Power leasing
9,100 square feet at 7708 Green Meadows Drive.
Southeast
The Southeast drove the market for most of 2012, and
the first quarter of 2013 is no different. After posting
115,105 square feet of positive absoprtion, the vacancy
remains at 11.3 percent. Construction continues on the
305,250 square foot FedEx SmartPost distribution
facility, and the 478,053 square foot speculative
distribution center on Centerpoint Parkway. Sears,
Roebuck and Company’s 358,760 square foot renewal at
5765 Green Pointe Drive is the highlight of the quarter.
Kraft vacated 516,174 square feet of space at 2235
Spiegel Drive, but it was not enough to negatively impact
the absorption for the quarter as major leases were
signed by HD Supply (437,256 square feet), S B Capital
(132,1000 square feet), Faro Logistics (58,056 square
feet), and Crown Cork and Seal (45,000 square feet).
(See Lease Activity on Page 2).
Southwest
The Southwest submarket experienced relatively
insignificant positive absorption of 19,628 square feet,
but still boasts an impressive 5.6 percent vacancy rate.
AY Manufacturing signed 63,041 square feet of
warehouse distribution space at 3515-3595 Urbancrest
Industrial Drive.
West
The submarkets on the west side of Central Ohio are
West, Madison and Union. The West submarket continues
its impressive run after recording 312,290 square feet of
positive absorption; which created an astonishing 100
basis point drop in vacancy to 6 percent. A 71,327 square
foot renewal by Yazaki at 5353 Fisher Road, and a
45,000 square foot lease by the Newark Group at 3024
Charter St. offset 110,000 square feet of move outs by
Monk Casket, All-State Belting Co., and Heidelberg.
Madison County showed no leasing activity, and
construction continues on the 450,000 square foot
Target distribution center.
Market intel
Market Activity Volume is the sum of the absolute value
of each absorption change in the market. It tells us a
little more about what exactly happened to the market
behind the absorption number. The Market Activity
Volume was 3,032,817 square feet. This is slightly
below the average (3,934,164 square feet) for first
quarters in the past four years. There are only 47
buildings with vacant contiguous space equal to or
greater than 100,000 square feet left in the Columbus
market. Nine were built since 2000 and eight of those
are warehouse/distribution.
Tenants in the Market
The types of tenant seen most frequently are 40,000-
70,000 square foot light warehouse and Flex/R&D
users. Demand from bulk warehouse and distribution
users seeking more than 200,000 square feet is
beginning to subside, but will continue to drive the
market. Auto suppliers, technology companies
(e-commerce distributors, internet based retailers and
third party logistic firms) are also active in the region.
The biggest hurdle facing tenants is their inability to
commit to long lease terms. With a tightening market and
decreased vacancy, landlords are pushing for higher
rental rates. Tenants are hard-pressed to examine
increases in operating expenses, and consider their
options to relocate into newer tax abated buildings, as
tax abatements expire on their existing buildings.
Leslie Hobbs
Director of Marketing | Ohio
Two Miranova Place
Suite # 900
Columbus, Ohio 43215
tel +1 614 410 5640
Jonathan Schuen
Research Analyst
Two Miranova Place
Suite # 900
Columbus, Ohio 43215
tel +1 614 437 4495
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Bureau of Economic Analysis, Gallup and the Cleveland
Federal Reserve.
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Columbus, Ohio 43215
tel +1 614 410 5612
research & forecast report | Q1 2013 | industrial | Greater Columbus Region