Steel Peak Properties, a Southern California investor focused on industrial outdoor storage yards, is lining up a fast expansion this year. The firm is converting underused buildings into fenced, paved yards and buying similar properties across the West. The company and a capital partner say they are ready to deploy fresh cash to scale a portfolio of yard-centric industrial sites.
As reported by CityBiz, Steel Peak has formed a joint venture with Newport Beach family office Tarsadia Investments that includes committed capital to acquire roughly $150 million of industrial outdoor storage properties in 2026, with a longer-term target of about $500 million. The firm, founded in January 2024 by Pasha Johnson and Blake Rodgers, acquired 11 IOS properties in its first two years and says the new partnership will let it accelerate dealmaking and operations.
Kearny Mesa Conversion Aims To Repurpose a Flex Building
Locally, Steel Peak and development partner RPG are turning a centrally located flex-office property in Kearny Mesa into a class A industrial outdoor storage site, according to REBusinessOnline. Plans call for warehouse build-out, fencing, lighting and paved yards to serve contractors and fleet users. The buyers also arranged a leaseback so the seller can remain onsite through 2025 while improvements are planned. Company materials and brokers say the site's freeway access and heavy-power infrastructure make it especially attractive for heavy users.
Denver Buy Underscores a Broader Western Push
Outside California, Steel Peak recently closed on a Denver yard property, a 16,858-square-foot industrial building on roughly two acres, marking its first Colorado acquisition. The deal, which listing and local coverage value at about $3.27 million, gives Steel Peak more usable yard space and heavy-industrial zoning in an infill Denver submarket, per Mile High CRE.
Why Investors Are Paying Up for Yard Space
Investors and operators say pricing for IOS properties has ramped up in recent years as usable industrial land tightens. In an interview with the San Diego Business Journal, co-founder Blake Rodgers noted that values have climbed from roughly $2 million to as high as $5 to $6 million in some markets. Rodgers told the paper he hopes to close two or more deals a month and is aiming to double the firm's portfolio this year, while co-founder Pasha Johnson said the team hopes to build a much larger platform over time. The interview also noted plans for the firm to relocate this summer from a small Carlsbad coworking space into larger offices in Encinitas as the team grows.
What It Could Mean for San Diego Contractors
For local contractors and equipment renters, more professionally managed yards could translate into safer, better-lit parking and storage options closer to job sites. Market trackers and IOS specialists say the asset class benefits from limited supply and steady tenant demand, making it an attractive alternative for investors searching for yield in tight industrial markets, per IOS List. At the same time, the conversion of infill office or flex sites to yard uses could squeeze office stock in some submarkets.
Steel Peak's next moves, including how quickly it can turn purchases into operating yards and whether other local owners follow suit, will be an early test of how deep investor appetite for yards really is. For now, executives say the plan is simple: keep buying, get yards operational and scale the platform beyond a handful of markets.
