Client Case Study – Ford / Waymo / BLP

Challenge

Ford Motor Company sought a confidential location for an autonomous vehicle R&D facility to support its self-driving technology collaboration with Argo AI and Lyft. The project required a secure, high-power site near CBD—with flexibility to evolve or exit depending on tech rollouts and utilization.

Context

This was no typical site selection. The asset needed to support:

• Urban vehicle testing & secure staging

• High electrical load capacity

• Privacy and confidentiality for stealth R&D

At the time, suitable facilities were nearly nonexistent. Ford wanted optionality—lease or purchase—and had to act before public market pressures exposed the initiative.

Strategic Response

• Conducted an off-market, buyer-side site selection

• Identified a pre-construction warehouse

• Negotiated with the developer—originally marketing the building for lease only—for a direct purchase

Phase II:
After one year of occupancy, Ford engaged us again to dispose of the underutilized asset. We:

• Designed a sealed-bid process to maximize investor appetite

• Closed a successful and competitive sale to Bridge Logistics Properties (BLP), generating a healthy profit for Ford

Phase III:
BLP retained us a third time—this time to lease the asset. We:

• Developed a market repositioning strategy

• Executed lease-up with Waymo (Alphabet/Google), repurposing the site as an autonomous vehicle deployment hub

Outcome

• Three (3) separate advisory engagements: acquisition, disposition, lease-up

• $3M+ value creation from buy to sell

• Long-term tenancy secured with a premier AV operator

Public Market Context

All three parties involved are publicly traded and globally recognized:

• Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F): Market Cap ~$50B

• Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOGL): Market Cap ~$2T

• Bridge Logistics Properties (REIT): Estimated Asset Portfolio ~$2.5B

Collectively, these transactions represent the caliber of Fortune 500-level, publicly traded companies Allen routinely advises—delivering value at scale and with discretion.

“The flexibility, discretion, and value we brought to each phase helped three major players achieve vastly different goals—within the same four walls.”

— Allen Lindow, CCIM
Principal, IPA (formerly First VP, CBRE)