EGS Commercial Real Estate said 34,748 square feet of space was absorbed last quarter, reversing a downward trend the area’s industrial space rode last year amidst job losses and business closings.

But while the positive absorption is a step in the right direction, sublease space continued to pile up during the first quarter, hitting nearly 615,000 square feet, compared to 55,123 square feet in the first quarter of 2009.

“The good news is everyone who thought about closing down, hopefully that’s already occurred,” said Mark Byers, senior vice president at EGS. “My hope is that these first quarter numbers reflect that.”

Byers said the positive absorption mainly is credited to one company Joshen Paper & Packaging, which signed a 65,000-square-foot lease to move its local distribution center from Citation Boulevard to Calera.

Read the full story on the Birmingham Business Journal' s website.