Nexus Industrial REIT (NXR-UN-T) has announced the sales of six properties, including a 270,000-square-foot industrial portfolio in Saskatchewan and a 160,000-square-foot office building in Saint John, N.B.

The divestments come as Nexus continues to offload legacy and non-core properties. The REIT, based in the Greater Toronto Area town of Oakville, rebranded itself two years ago to reflect its focus on the industrial and distribution sector.

The properties it has sold are (the gross leasable area is at Nexus’ ownership interest):

• 320 Industrial Dr., Regina: Industrial, 60,000 square feet;
• 332 Industrial Dr., Regina: Industrial, 85,260 square feet;
• 1117-1135 Pettigrew Rd., Regina: Industrial, 39,922 square feet;
• 1414 Fletcher Rd., Saskatoon: Industrial, 86,000 square feet;
• 10500 Ryan Ave., Dorval, Que.: Office, 52,372 square feet; and
• 400 Main St., Saint John, N.B.: Office, 159,989 square feet.

Financial details of the transactions were not released.

“The sale of these non-core industrial document storage buildings and legacy office buildings further concentrates our portfolio on high-quality industrial properties, advancing our strategy as a Canada-focused pure-play industrial REIT,” Kelly Hanczyk, the CEO of Nexus, said in the announcement.

“Industrial assets now contribute 96 per cent of our NOI, and our industrial concentration will increase as we complete the sale of our legacy retail portfolio in the coming months.”

Place 400 office sale

The Saint John office and commercial transaction involves a three-storey property known as Place 400. It was sold to R2 Capital, according to an earlier release from that firm. The sale price was approximately $3 million. 

The multi-tenant facility on the edge of the city’s downtown was originally marketed for over $6 million, but the listing price had been cut to $3.1 million. That reflected “the value of the land itself” as a potential redevelopment property according to a Brunswick Brokers marketing brochure.

It backs onto an existing apartment building, and the brochure states the property, which overlooks the downtown and harbour areas, has potential for up to 300 units of multiresidential redevelopment.

“It is believed that the highest and best use for the 3.2-acre site is to demolish the existing structure in favour of a brand-new high-rise residential development,” the brochure states.

Nexus’ portfolio now encompasses interests in over 100 properties comprising a total of approximately 12.5 million square feet of leasable space. It is broken down into 84 industrial properties, three remaining office assets and 16 retail properties, according to the trust’s website.