Final phase of office warehouse suites opens in Hampton

ACO Development (ACO) has completed the fourth and last of its office warehouse suites in Hampton. The 10,000-square-foot building, which offers space designed for startup companies, is located on Incubator Road in the Copeland Industrial Park, not far from Interstate 664. 

Clay Culbreth, one of the partners in the venture, says a couple of the units already have been leased. “We’re going for those small, owner operators who are coming out of their kitchens, their pickup trucks, and they want to establish their first legitimate business location and business address,” he says.

ACO will hold a ribbon cutting ceremony on Friday at 11:30 a.m. to celebrate the final phase of a private commercial development that began more than a decade ago.

In 2006, ACO Development partners Culbreth, Tom Atherton, and Bill Overman purchased a 14-acre parcel from the city of Hampton. While the city had initially slated the land to be saved for a future large manufacturer, the ACO partners persuaded the city to sell to them with a promise of new development, increased employment and taxes — with no city incentives.

“We saw a need for an incubator-style office warehouse project as well as ancillary services to benefit the prospective new tenants and the existing business in Copeland Industrial Park, “says Culbreth.

ACO subdivided the parcel and sold tracts to companies such as 7-Eleven and Langley Federal Credit Union who built their own buildings. 

For the remaining six-acre tract, the group came up with the concept of KISS: Keep It Simple Suites for office warehouse clients. ACO built three buildings of about 10,000 square feet each. The first two buildings went up in 2007, while the third building was completed in 2016.  “All of them have been full ever since,” says Culbreth. “We finished the fourth building in December at a cost of about $1.1 million, including site work.”

For $895 a month, clients get a 900-square-foot unit with two parking spaces. Rent includes real-estate taxes, stormwater management fees, grounds maintenance, fire inspection and use of a dumpster.

Short-term leases are available. “We’ll do a month, a year. If a company is growing, it doesn’t want to be locked into 900 square feet,” says Culbreth.