Two out-of-town developers to build new warehouse complex on Route 1 in Chesterfield

The new buildings would rise on 78 acres along Route 1 between Ruffin Mill and Woods Edge roads. (Google Earth)

Two new-to-market real estate firms aim to build a sizable industrial development as their entrance into the Richmond region. 

New York-based Eagle Cliff Real Estate Partners and Portsmouth Real Estate Partners out of Maryland and Houston are planning two warehouse buildings totaling over 400,000 square feet at 15501-15601 Route 1 in Chesterfield. 

The project, referred to as Ruffin Mill Industrial in planning documents recently submitted to the county, is both firms’ first in the Richmond area, and Portsmouth’s first major project overall. 

The buildings would rise on about 78 acres of a 135-acre site. A few months ago the land sold for $3.5 million to an entity tied to Stream Realty Partners, a firm out of Dallas that also spent nearly $100 million on an Amazon-anchored warehouse a few miles north. 

Portsmouth co-founder Patrick Keeley said Stream is no longer involved in the deal and that Eagle Cliff and Portsmouth now control the entirety of the land. 

A site plan for the planned development. (County documents)

Ruffin Mill Industrial will total about 442,000 square feet split between the two buildings, one at 182,000 square feet and the other 260,000 square feet.

“As designed, building one is a bit shallower, and that’s intentional to cater to smaller tenants. (We’re) targeting different tenant profiles,” Keeley said, noting that they haven’t decided whether they’ll look to build them in phases or at the same time. 

Kimley-Horn is the project engineer and landscape architect, and Keeley said they’re working on finalizing a contract with a general contractor. He declined to disclose the estimated project cost. 

Patrick Keeley

The land on which Ruffin Mill Industrial is planned is currently a wooded area, and Keeley said they’re looking to begin clearing and grading the lot in the first quarter of 2026. 

“We’re excited to bring this product to market,” Keeley said. “Richmond’s got a great growth story and we believe that story is in its early innings.”

Keeley and Bailey Jones left careers at Morgan Stanley and Lionstone Investments, respectively, to found Portsmouth in May. The company is looking to develop and invest in industrial and multifamily properties in Virginia, North Carolina and Texas. 

“We’ve both spent a lot of time investing in and networking in the markets that we’re going to be operating in,” Keeley said. 

Jones is leading Portsmouth’s residential arm, which is focusing specifically on Austin, Texas, and the Triangle region of North Carolina, while Keeley is handling Portsmouth’s industrial division, which he said is targeting the Richmond and Hampton Roads markets. 

The firm is amid a $50 million capital raise that it plans to use to finance its first 10 to 20 deals.

“On the industrial front, it will probably be about 50 percent development, 50 percent buying existing (buildings), versus residential (which is) going to be almost entirely buying existing,” Keeley said.  

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