34 acres, with a self storage development

[Timothy M Weber]

So first time I made this post in another forum, a "pro contractor forum" lol, I was cut down, told I was stupid, and then banned for not being a "contractor" all in a couple hours. I laughed it off, after wondering how hard it would be to get the moderators home address.

I think my concept is simple and I'm looking for some simple numbers I can begin to get some general construction cost on paper, as well as start to compile a list of people that can do the work. So here we go.

I'm looking at 34 acres outside of the STL metro area, this property has about .25 of a mile of road frontage, situated on a major corridor between the STL metro area, and lake of the Ozarks. Currently, the property has a 3bd, 1.5 bath duplex on a small parcel of land near the road frontage. The rest is wooded, with some large open, flat area, near the road frontage. 

I plan to use the Duplex as a long term rental, one side for a previous tenant, and one side for my current roommate. I will not be living there, so house hacking is a grey area (essentially I would be lying about living on site if I went that direction). I plan to turn the most of the frontage, into an open air recreational/commercial/farm equipment storage lot. While continuing to develop a long term plan for the back 25 acres (I haven't really seen the back acreage).

I plan to go after an SBA loan, I have several investors I can bring to the table, and one that is already sitting at the table. I have spoken with an SBA lender and developed a list of things I need to get. Most of it I understand financial statements, LLC organization docs, taxes, stuff like that. One thing I'm having trouble with is getting the numbers for construction of the actual storage lot.

What I'm not looking for is a massive bid, with hours put into it. Just some general numbers that I can put some additional figures to develop a profit plan. If you are in St. Louis, St. Charles, Jefferson, Franklin or Warren county Missouri and you want to help with some more in depth numbers in exchange for being put at the top of the list when it comes to getting this project built I'm open to that as well. I have not started the permit process, I understand the permit process and have been in contact with the county government. 

2 paths for construction

1. A gravel road base lot

2. A modified asphalt lot

The list of work as I see it.

1. Survey, I have never hired someone to survey land. What is the process, what is a general cost for a surveyor. what sort of credentials should a surveyor have, and what other information will the surveyor need.

2. Site plan, I would think this can only happen after a survey is complete. The site plan is needed to start the permit process. Which in this space is zoned AG (Agriculture) and would require a conditional use permit.

3. Permits, I've talked with the local government and have been told the process essential is talking to every land owner in a 1000 feet, and putting an ad in the local news paper to see if anyone objects.

4. Excavation, the lot site its self is relatively flat but I assume it will need some lite excavation. Any general numbers in this area would be a good starting point.

5. Drainage, can the lot be sloped to drain all one direction, or do i need actual pipe drainage. what is the cheapest option that could hold up to having RV's, farm equipment, and dump trucks driving over it.

6. If I go with a gravel lot to start with, gravel roads require underlay fabric to stop the road bed from pushing into the soil and spreading out or disappearing over time. Does anyone know what this fabric is called.

7. If go with an asphalt lot or a larger combination of gravel and asphalt, what is the general cost of laying down a flat slab of 1 acre lot of asphalt.

A. price for 1 acre lot of asphalt

B. Price for 1 acre lot of Gravel road bed

8. 1 acre square chain link fence

9. Gate, automated, opening system can be worked into an automated business system I'm developing using a text based system. So the end user can open the gate, and take or store in their area with no need to talk to lot management.

10. Security Cameras and lights, are there any local companies in the will do both lot lights and cameras. Cameras must feed to an off site location.

11. Insurance?

12. Anything I missed.

Any other in sight would be great, I plan to go after these numbers myself with local vendors and contractors. I just want to start the process of making bigger pockets my first stop when I start to research a project.

Thanks for reading my first post