Newmark's client, the Wooster Brush Co., had decided to build a new warehouse in Wooster, Ohio, to accommodate its recent growth. The Newmark team convinced the company of the merits of constructing a building larger than it needed as an investment.
The strategy would enable the firm to generate revenue by leasing a portion of the facility to another tenant. It would also create potential expansion space should Wooster Brush continue to grow and need more space in the future.
Wooster Brush ultimately built a 608,400-square-foot facility within Wooster's Innovation Park, occupying 405,600 square feet. The warehouse includes shipping, receiving and staging areas, as well as a Northwest shipping. The building also includes 16 docks with a drive-in door.
For its foresight to build a bigger warehouse for itself and lease the extra space to Welch Packaging, the Wooster Brush Co.'s new warehouse earned a 2025 CoStar Impact Award for lease of the year in Cleveland, as judged by real estate professionals familiar with the market.
About the project: With significant interest from other tenants in the remaining available space, the Newmark team conducted showings and tours, helping Wooster Brush evaluate the potential tenants.
The team identified an ideal tenant in Welch Packaging Group, a family-owned custom corrugated packaging manufacturer looking to expand its sheet feeder system and supply chain capabilities. Welch Packaging Group executed a long-term gross lease with all utilities at $5.50 per square foot. The expansion added 50 new full-time jobs to the area and is expected to generate more than $3.2 million in annual payroll.
With statewide operations in Toledo, Cleveland, Ashtabula, Cincinnati and Columbus, Welch Packaging said its new location in Wooster will produce corrugated sheets for its existing box plants.
What the judge said: "The Wooster Lease will have the biggest local impact on the population and location in terms of job creation, residual economic development and repopulation of the area," said Richard Kassouf, the owner and broker of record for New Hope Realty.
They made it happen: The Newmark team that advised Wooster Brush Co. was Vice Chairman Terry Coyne and Director Claire Coyne.
CoStar Market Manager Akeem Holmes contributed to this report.