UCB's $14M Land Buy Clears Way for $2B Drug Manufacturing Plant: The Atlanta Deal Sheet

Last month, UCB announced it planned to develop a $2B manufacturing plant in Gwinnett County.

Records now reveal how much the Belgium-based drugmaker paid for the land for its future plant: just north of $14M.

The U.S. arm of UCB paid the Rowen Foundation $14.3M for nearly 117 acres in the foundation's life sciences campus off Georgia 316. The land will be used for UCB's planned pharmaceutical manufacturing plant, according to documents filed with the Georgia Superior Court Clerks’ Cooperative Authority.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced last month that the Belgian life sciences company behind such drugs as Cimzia and Neupro committed to developing a 460K SF plant over the next five to six years. The plant would hire 330 employees and have a $5B impact on the region, the governor said.

UCB, which obtained around $174M in incentives and infrastructure investments from the county, plans to deploy artificial intelligence, robotics and automation at the plant once completed. 

SALES

Atlanta-based Magnolia Advanced Materials purchased 4360 Northeast Expressway, a 115K SF warehouse in Doraville, from McWell LLC for $12.5M, according to documents filed with the GSCCCA.

DeKalb County valued the facility at $8.7M in 2025.

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An LLC tied to Copart Direct purchased 6077 Fulton Industrial Blvd., a 207K SF distribution center, from an LLC tied to Boston-based Longpoint for $16.7M, according to documents filed with the GSCCCA.

Longpoint purchased the facility in 2021 for $12.5M, according to Fulton County records.

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Atlanta-based Radco Cos. purchased The Everett, a 564-unit apartment complex in Duluth, for an undisclosed sum. The county appraised it at $71M last year. 

The apartment complex was last purchased in 2004 by a company tied to Starwood Property Trust for $28.5M, according to Gwinnett County property records.

Radco is rebranding the property as Radius apartments. CBRE’s Shea Campbell and Ashish Cholia brokered the sale.

LEASING

Sterling Pointe landed three tenants in recent weeks.

Michelin Connected Fleet renewed 28K SF, American InterContinental University secured 25K SF, and TQL signed for 17K SF at Sterling Pointe, a two-building suburban office complex in Central Perimeter, Colliers’ Kevin Driver announced on LinkedIn.

Driver and Deming Fish, also of Colliers, represented the landlord, The Simpson Organization.

Michelin was represented by Avison Young’s Rick Nash; JLL’s Ryanne Pennington, Andy Strand and Maren Christian represented AIU; and Cushman & Wakefield’s Annie Gomez, Jon Mayeske and Jordan Weider represented TQL, Driver said.  

PERSONNEL

Noble Investment Group promoted a host of executives:

• Jeff Pennington has been named vice president in the firm’s financial planning and analysis team.

• Denise Kauble was promoted to vice president for asset management.

• Owen Berry was named vice president for the firm’s design and development team.

• Dewitt Lovelace is now project director for the design and development team.