Palmdale gains 9.4M SF
A master‑planned Antelope Valley Commerce Center in Palmdale just secured permits covering 8 million new warehouse square feet and — with prior approvals — now totals about 9.4 million square feet, positioning Palmdale as a larger outer‑ring industrial alternative for Southern California occupiers. The approvals were reported across developer filings and local coverage that framed the project as a potential cost‑relief valve for companies facing high Greater LA rents. ( )
Palmdale just cleared the way for a 9.4 million-square-foot industrial project, after new approvals added more than 8 million square feet to Antelope Valley Commerce Center. (therealdeal.com) The newly entitled piece is Antelope Valley Commerce Center East, and it joins a previously approved west section of about 1.4 million square feet. Together, the two sections span about 510 acres at Sierra Highway and Avenue M in Palmdale, according to developer Covington Group and local coverage published April 8 and April 14. (prnewswire.com, therealdeal.com) City and state planning records show the east side was designed as a phased commerce center on a 432.9-acre site, with up to 8,241,552 square feet of industrial space and 60,984 square feet of commercial uses. The first phase alone proposed six industrial buildings, plus roads, truck courts, utilities and other site infrastructure. (ceqanet.lci.ca.gov) The approvals matter because Palmdale is pitching itself as an outer-ring logistics market while the Greater Los Angeles industrial market resets. Colliers said average asking rent across Greater Los Angeles fell to $1.20 triple net in the first quarter of 2026, down 31 percent from the second-quarter 2023 peak, while vacancy rose to 5.9 percent. (colliers.com) Covington said the project can accommodate buildings as large as 2 million square feet and put total buildout cost above $1.2 billion. That scale gives Palmdale a shot at tenants that need very large footprints that are harder to assemble closer to the ports and the Los Angeles Basin. (prnewswire.com, commercialsearch.com) The city’s environmental review process had been moving for months before this week’s headlines. California’s environmental database lists the draft environmental impact report as received on June 20, 2024, and Palmdale’s environmental documents page shows the project among the city’s active review files. (ceqanet.lci.ca.gov, cityofpalmdaleca.gov) Palmdale’s City Council previously adopted the specific plan, certified the environmental impact report and approved the development agreement, according to local meeting coverage. That same coverage said labor groups backed the project on the grounds that it would bring construction jobs and local hiring commitments, while the council adopted a statement of overriding considerations for unavoidable impacts. (citizenportal.ai) The next question is not whether the land is entitled, but how fast tenants materialize. Palmdale now has one of the county’s largest approved industrial footprints on paper, and the project’s pace will depend on leasing, capital and how much demand shifts outward from the tighter core markets. (therealdeal.com, colliers.com)
