T
he Sterling Organization plans to transform a former Fry's Electronics store in Fremont into an industrial site for manufacturing and tech research. The Florida-based private equity investor has filed plans to convert the 143,800-square-foot building at 43800 Osgood Road into an industrial space with a new facade and a 7,500-square-foot mezzanine, expanding it to 151,300 square feet. Sterling Organization acquired the property in June for $35.7 million, or $248 per square foot, from an affiliate of Quality Real Estate.

    The former Fry's Electronics store closed in early 2021 due to financial struggles and has remained vacant since. The company's proposed renovation would revamp the site for advanced manufacturing and research and development. Sterling Organization, founded in 2007 by Brian Kosoy and Greg Moross, manages $2 billion in assets across 75 commercial properties with offices in 10 states.

    This project is part of a larger strategy by Sterling Organization to repurpose vacant retail spaces into logistics and distribution centers. In June, the company's consumer logistics fund sold a former Fry's Electronics store in Downers Grove for $24.5 million, and in April last year, it acquired two shopping centers in Fremont for over $40 million.