I read an article a few years back were they were converting a hi-rise in Miami into garage condos that make these look down right homely.

Not sure how many the did or if the project actually took off or got cancelled.

 

Other than just being a whole not nicer looking... how is this different than like big garage bay's in an industrial park? or was this built beacuse they dont have these kindsa things up there?

 

This property, the events, and the people are all very car(vehicle)-centric. Pretty much everyone I've met is into cars/trucks/cycles of some sort so I think that creates a common thread between an otherwise fairly diverse group of individuals.

Also, the campus, clubhouse, the available amenities are all pretty luxurious compared to standard mini-storage places (we have those too): in-ground heat, campus wi-fi, satellite, hardi-plank siding, security gate/cameras, etc.

One of those events that's been helpful re the marketing of this property (which is pretty much word of mouth) is the Cars & Coffee (Cafe) event that's held here the first Saturday of the month (April-Nov). +/- 500 cars and at least that many spectators decend on Motorplex for free coffee/doughnuts and a look at some amazing cars. Lot's of garages are opened up so that helps promote the idea further.

I guess 'community' would be the other main difference. There have been some cool events here at the clubhouse such as drive in movie night, an auction, and one of the guys is putting together some 'owner' events once a month.

At the end of the day, it's a very nice mini-storage facility with some great people/ownership who make it a destination.

 

sounds very cool! wish i had the capital or knowledge to get something like that started down here

good luck with it and be sure to post some finalized pictures!

 

Got a rich uncle?

Based on some rough eyeballing of property/building costs vs price per sq. foot, it's a profitable model if one has the start up capital and can create enough interest to sell most/all of the units.

Seriously, I'd guess that the owners of Motorplex have considered the viability of this concept on other (car-popular) markets. MIA area is very, very much a car market (as you know).

Thanks - I will definitely keep updating this as the build continues. Next stop, electrical/plumbing.

 

What an awesome project. I used to live in Wayzata and I still miss the area. Except for the 72" of snow. I'm really glad to see that the units are selling well. Nothing succeeds like success, as they say.

Can't wait to see the finished photos, but it'll just make me more envious. Enjoy your new unit!!

 

Thanks much - Bruno's hinted that they might build a satellite Motorplex in Wayzata for the guys who don't want to drive down to Chan.

And yes, one of the reasons these sell here is there ain't much else to do in the winter

 

The issue with a lot of the more "major" car markets is that the trade off between accessibility and development costs (primarily in this instance driven by the land cost since the buildings themselves are pretty inexpensive to construct) makes it difficult to get a big enough footprint close enough and reasonable enough economic terms that you can put the deal together profitably. I don't know about the location in your area, but I bet they are not paying $10/sf for the land which is what you are going to be looking at (or more) for well located accessible land in many of the major car markets.

I have done a lot of research on this (including investigating how it is done in Europe, and it is done in a pretty big way in some European markets) and at the end of the day I could not get it to pencil out here in the Metro Atlanta area. My model was a little different than Motorplex as I was looking at a more traditional demised warehouse style rather than a collection of buildings, but I do like the "community" aspect of their development.

All that being said, everywhere I could get the land cheap enough it would wind up being a little too remote from the core areas to feel comfortable that it would sell/lease up quickly and every time I found the right parcel of land in an accessible area, the acquisition cost was too high for the deal to pencil out. Perhaps now that the commercial real estate market is in the tank some land could be more reasonably priced and the deal could work. I've got a great concept and a domain parked.

Tal

 

Good points.

Land here is relatively cheap.. Just so happens that MSP has a strong car culture (who would have thought). Might just be a case of right place, time and market for Motorplex.

 

Very awesome. Some of these units were just over the top awesome when I was walking around. I can see the appeal of them and how cool they would be. But pointless when I live up in Maplewood. 45 minute drive to see my garage condo? haha nope

 

Did somebody say drinking and monopoly? Im IN!

 

Wow, hell of a project ! ! ! ! ! !

Looks wicked!

 

Very nice Chris! Looking forward to more progress pictures and to hopefully seeing it in person next spring.

 

As soon as we can!

 

Thanks Jeremy - aren't you coming to Cars/Coffee on Saturday?

If not, you're welcome to stop by anytime!