How Many Self Storage Facilities Are Needed?

gests that businesses looking to open a facility should take a look at car traffic at a location, expected residential development in the area, and current population (anywhere from about 20,000 people in a rural setting to 100,000 or more in an urban setting, as a general guideline).

Census figures in 2021 show almost 650,000 residents in Ocean County. Toms River has about 100,000. Manchester and Berkeley both have about 45,000. Residential development has been increasing throughout the county.

A new self storage facility is being built on Route 37 near Northampton Boulevard.

By Chris Lundy

BERKELEY – Several self storage facilities are currently under construction in the area, joining ones that are already in operation. This begs the question how much demand is there for these establishments?

There’s a proposal to turn the driving range and parking lot area of Blackbeard’s Cave on Route 9 into a public storage facility. The land is 8.71 acres and the facility would be 91,260 square feet. The applicant was Marble Arch Homes of Lakewood, which also constructed the nearby Hickory Farms neighborhood. This is only one plan and it wouldn’t impact the rest of the land that’s currently undeveloped.

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(two earned) over nine innings. She struck out seven and no one got a walk off of her.

Their next game will be in Bristol, CT, where they will represent New Jersey in the Little League Softball Mid-Atlantic Regional Tournament, which runs July 23 - July 28. Their fi rst match will be on the 23rd, facing off against a team from Washington, D.C.

When the Blackbeard’s plan was before the Zoning Board, the daughter of one of Blackbeard’s former owners said there were already seven storage facilities in Berkeley, and three in Lacey, and 19 in Toms River. She didn’t see the need for more.

There are several on Route 37, and another large one is being built on the westbound side near the Wawa at Northampton Boulevard. Although these are in Toms River, they most likely serve the senior communities of Berkeley and Manchester.

Many offer military discounts, which shows that they cater to soldiers living at the base.

An industry publication, Storable , sug-

How To Help

The team and parents are traveling to Connecticut for the tournament. They are asking for help with travel and lodging expenses.

“This is an incredible opportunity for these young ladies. Please help us in our fundraising efforts to help offset some of their costs for travel and meals,” said Joey Humenik, who created the fundrasier. “This will help us to give them the chance to create unforgettable memories, friendships, and experiences that will last a lifetime.”

To help, visit gofund.me/417fa9a7

According to SpareFoot Storage Beat , a website that regularly collects statistics, storage facilities are a $29 billion annual industry. There are more than 51,200 facilities nationwide amounting to more than 2 billion square feet. Six large companies (Public Storage, Extra Space Storage, CubeSmart, Life Storage, National Storage Affiliates Trust, and U-Haul) own a third of them. An interesting detail is that when considering the U.S. population of 330 million, there is roughly 6 square feet of storage available per person.

Of all households in the country, 11.1% rent a storage space, they said.

Profitable Business

According to Storable’s records, the typical profit margin of a self storage facility is 11%, compared to a restaurant that’s 3-5%.

They also said that the business is fairly resistant to recession. Personnel is often one of the most expensive parts

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The construction of the building would be the final part and that might take as much as three years even if a tenant was signed today, he said.

Other Construction

The last few months of Planning Board meetings have had mostly small applications. Whenever anyone wants to build something in town, they have to have their plans ap- of running a business, and the number of employees needed per square foot is much less than a store of the same size. Additionally, the overhead is less because unlike a retail establishment, they are not buying products, shipping them in, and selling them. All the items inside the facilities are brought there by customers. For decades, towns have wanted big box stores in town. They are a profitable business that the town can charge property tax on – which in turn lowers the taxes for residents. However, since the rise of Amazon, big box stores are closing down, leaving empty shells behind. Towns are looking for a business they can tax and a storage facility doesn’t drain resources very much. proved by them.

Without big box stores to anchor a town’s property taxes, they look to other large buildings to take up space on highways. This is one reason warehouses have become so prevalent lately as well. InsideSelfStorage.com goes into length describing how owners can argue ways to bring their property assessments down and pay less property taxes.

Retail Insider said “Players like Amazon are cleaning up in the retail world as online shopping has become consumers’ preferred way to shop. The draw in filling virtual baskets can be attributed to: convenience, ease of purchase, competitive pricing and a wider range of products.” However, people still need items. So, perhaps they buy them online. And, if they don’t have enough room for everything they buy, they can rent a storage unit.

On the schedule for July’s Planning Board meeting, most of the plans were minor subdivisions of one-four lots. The only large one was Phase 1 of the development plan for Community Medical Center.

At the board’s June meeting, the following plans were approved: a change for Lasolas Market on Route 35; a 1776-square-foot office addition for Ocean County Memorial Park; a 2,720-square-foot addition to Ocean County Power Sports at 2130 Route 37; and a business office with a residential apartment at 3011 Route 37 (Bayshore Auto).