EastGroup Properties has started construction on a 156,000-square-foot industrial project in Tampa with projected costs of $26.9 million.
The Jackson, Mississippi-based industrial REIT disclosed the project in a business update released Feb. 26, alongside new leasing activity, an equity raise and a credit rating upgrade.
EastGroup did not identify the Tampa submarket or project name. The company said construction began during the first quarter.
The start comes as EastGroup reports occupancy near full across its portfolio and rising rental rates on new and renewal leases.
As of Feb. 25, the company’s portfolio was 96.6% leased and 96.0% occupied. To date, during the first quarter, rental rate increases on new and renewal leases averaged 41.9% on a straight-line basis and 27.9% on a cash basis.
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“We are pleased to see the occupancy and leasing trends we experienced late last year continuing thus far into 2026,” CEO Marshall Loeb said in the release. “Occupancy is trending in line to slightly ahead of our forecast.”
For Tampa Bay, the project adds new institutional industrial inventory in a market where vacancy remains tight and rent growth has supported continued development.
Florida remains one of EastGroup’s core states, along with Texas, California, Arizona and North Carolina. The company focuses on developing, acquiring and operating distribution facilities typically ranging from 20,000 to 100,000 square feet and clustering them near major transportation corridors in supply-constrained submarkets.
Since its Feb. 4 earnings release, EastGroup has executed leases totaling approximately 166,000 square feet on development properties.
One lease includes a 100,000-square-foot expansion for a current tenant. The company projects total costs of about $10.6 million for that expansion and plans to begin construction during the first quarter.
President Reid Dunbar said he has been touring EastGroup’s markets as he transitions into the role and is “encouraged” by conditions across the portfolio and development pipeline.
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In February, Moody’s upgraded EastGroup’s issuer rating to Baa1 with a stable outlook, up from Baa2 with a positive outlook. Investment-grade ratings can influence borrowing costs and access to capital, both of which shape development activity.
The company also raised equity during the first quarter to date, selling 365,620 shares of common stock through its continuous equity offering program at a weighted average price of $191.45 per share. The sales generated approximately $70 million in gross proceeds.
EastGroup paired the Tampa start with two previously announced transactions.
In Jacksonville, the company closed on the acquisition of Legend Point for approximately $38.2 million. The property includes two buildings totaling 177,000 square feet and is fully leased to five tenants.
In Fresno, California, EastGroup sold a six-building, 398,000-square-foot property for approximately $37 million, exiting that market. The company reported a gain of about $25 million on the sale. Gains on real estate sales are excluded from funds from operations, a standard REIT metric used to measure recurring operating performance.
EastGroup is scheduled to present at the Citi 2026 Global Property CEO Conference on March 2 at 9:35 a.m. Eastern. Executives are expected to discuss transaction activity, leasing conditions and market trends.
EastGroup, a member of the S&P Mid-Cap 400 and Russell 2000 indexes, operates approximately 65 million square feet of industrial space, including development projects under construction and in lease-up.
The company did not disclose a delivery timeline for the Tampa project or identify prospective tenants.
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