Food bank building buyer plans large expansion

Jeff Quackenbush, Business Journal Staff Reporter
Mon, 01 Oct 2012 13:55:02 +0000
Commercial Real Estate, Health Care and Senior Living, Industry News, North Bay News, Sonoma Report, Top News Stories, industrial real estate, investment real estate, NeoMicro Inc., North Bay Business Journal 10-1-2012, Redwood Empire Food Bank, Santa Rosa

SANTA ROSA — NeoMicro, Inc., a reseller of medical and laboratory equipment, relocated from the East Bay two years ago and now plans to more than double the size of its facility early next year.

NeoMicro (707-568-0900, neomicroinc.com) owners Jonathan West and Lauren Shalaby, as ShalWest Properties, LLC, paid $1.275 million for the 20,160-square-foot current main warehouse and offices for Redwood Empire Food Bank, located at 3320 Industrial Dr. in northwest Santa Rosa.

The 24-year-old food bank is leasing the building from ShalWest through January. That’s when work crews are set to be finished with improvements in a 60,400-square-foot new facility for the food bank near Charles M. Schulz–Sonoma County Airport. [See "Food bank expects to open new building in January," May 12.]

In February, NeoMicro plans to relocate from a 10,000-square-foot leased warehouse at 40 Maxwell Ct. in west central Santa Rosa, according to Mr. West. NeoMicro had expanded there from 4,000 square feet in Berkeley in 2010.

“Ten thousand square feet is not enough, because we have equipment coming in by the truckload all the time,” Mr. West said.

NeoMicro buys new, used and refurbished equipment from hospitals, biotechnology companies and other labs largely throughout the Bay Area then resells it online, currently via auction site eBay, to other businesses.

The four-employee company plans to hire five to seven more in the first year of operating in the new facility. NeoMicro has been in talks with Santa Rosa Junior College about candidates from the appliance-repair program.

“It seems that what they are trained to work on I can cross-train them to work on medical devices,” Mr. West said.

Sales this year have been lower, which Mr. West attributes to continued sluggish economic conditions following the recession.

Though the owners of NeoMicro will be paying about $500 more a month on the building purchase loan than for rent in the current location half the size, the purchase was a good long-term investment, according to Mr. West.

Gil Saydah of Keegan & Coppin/ONCOR International represented ShalWest in the Sept. 7 purchase of 3320 Industrial. Dave Peterson and Brian Keegan of Keegan & Coppin represented the food bank.