What happens when a manufacturer or data center finds a site but cannot get connected to the grid for five or six years? Rob Gramlich, president of Grid Strategies, joins Justin Smith to explain why electric demand caught utilities off guard, what is slowing new connections, and how power is becoming part of industrial site selection.

We discuss rising utility bills, the culture clash between fast-moving tech firms and reliability-focused utilities, the race for AI power, regional differences from Northern Virginia to Texas and Ohio, and practical ways to get more out of the grid we already have. Rob also explains the three Ps of transmission (planning, permitting and paying) and why a willingness to pay for a project does not make the cost-sharing decision simple.

Key Takeaways

• Utilities are telling some large new customers they cannot connect them for five or six years. Grid capacity, not land, now sets many start dates.
• The five-year U.S. load growth forecast rose from 2.6% to 4.7% in a single year (Grid Strategies, December 2023).
• Rising bills have many causes: new demand, expensive equipment, rebuilding after wildfires and storms, and replacing aging equipment.
• Big loads chase grid capacity, then move on once it is used up.
• Wind-cooled lines, smarter charging and batteries can all get more out of the existing grid.
• For power-intensive site searches, bring grid expertise onto the site selection team early.

Recorded September 30, 2026. Later that day, the Senate released the bipartisan permitting bill Rob mentions, the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act of 2026. Rob had not reviewed the bill text on air.

Watch the full conversation on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7I6DC9lJzU

Guest: Rob Gramlich, President, Grid Strategies
Host: Justin Smith, SIOR, Lee & Associates Irvine

I sat down with Jack Cline, President of Lee & Associates Los Angeles, Downtown office, to talk about the buildings he holds, the market he knows and the brokerage business he is still building.

We cover Vernon and Commerce, power for data centers, a changing choice of buildings for sale, Bill Lee's broker-owned model, using Claude to work through office economics, building young brokers and the books Jack gives away. I also share what ownership and a loan rate reset taught me about the questions I ask on somebody else's deal.

Recorded Oct. 2, 2026. Jack's investment figures, office economics and market observations are his account in this conversation. His comments about rates, cold-storage demand and development reflect his views as of the recording.

• Why Jack says the deals he regrets are the buildings he sold
• How partnership and cash flow shape his approach to ownership
• Vernon and Commerce, sale supply and slower price adjustment
• Why he sees power as central to data-center site decisions
• Bill Lee's broker-owned office model and recruiting economics
• Four runners, a learning curriculum and the next generation
• A prescription pad for books and the danger of getting comfortable

• 00:00:00 Youth Champions and mindset
• 00:03:27 LA industrial: Downtown, Vernon and Commerce
• 00:04:45 Data centers and power in Vernon
• 00:07:25 Vernon housing and local government
• 00:09:50 Cold storage in Vernon
• 00:13:15 A sales overhang and slower price correction
• 00:14:40 Where interest rates settle
• 00:15:39 LA City, Prologis and Measure ULA
• 00:17:55 Property rights
• 00:19:28 Opening Lee's Downtown LA office
• 00:22:27 Building young brokers
• 00:23:31 The next generation at Lee
• 00:26:03 Growing the pie and investing with clients
• 00:27:26 Bill Lee and the broker-owned model
• 00:29:51 Recruiting with AI and the office flywheel
• 00:31:36 Presidents meetings
• 00:32:52 Strategic Coach, EOS and personal growth
• 00:34:40 Owning buildings
• 00:39:51 Books he prescribes
• 00:43:31 Complacency and a bigger life

Guest: Jack Cline, President, Lee & Associates Los Angeles (Downtown office). Host: Justin Smith, SIOR.

Justin Smith sits down with Bill Shopoff, President and CEO of Shopoff Realty Investments, to discuss land entitlement, master-planned development, and industrial market cycles across Southern California and the Inland Empire.

Topics covered include:

• How the Sierra Club and CVAN CEQA lawsuit delayed the I-10 Logistics Center into the peak 2021 market
• Selling the 1.83M SF I-10 facility for $329 million to Brookfield
• Mesa Verde in Calimesa: keeping 3,650 homes under SB 330 while unlocking 4.2M SF of big-box industrial
• Why power availability and substation capacity have become an asset class in site selection
• Repurposing industrial sites to residential, including 281 homes at the former Amway facility in Buena Park
• Entitling industrial on Agua Caliente tribal land at the I-10 and Highway 111
• Using AI for rapid site diligence and how AI will reshape the entry-level real estate analyst role

Recorded October 7, 2026. Figures, project details, and market statements are Bill's account in the interview.

Watch the full video conversation on YouTube: https://youtu.be/gKPOlDuZQqA

Download the free Industrial Relocation Guide: https://smithcre.com/market-reports/industrial-insights-industrial-relocation-guide/

Full episode transcript and show notes: https://smithcre.com/podcast/bill-shopoff/