1. Property Consider the best locations in terms of easy street access, ISO ratings, and availability of the utilities you will need. The cost of the property is likely to be your biggest variable.
2. Property Survey Whether you are going to build this year or ten years from now, the survey should not substantially change. Getting the full survey early will save you time later.
3. Environmental/Geotechnical Report Some municipalities or lending institutions require this prior to property purchase. This report will reveal rock, bad soil, ground water, underground tanks, etc. Aside from the report, just knowing the site history can do much to predict the site development costs.
4. Adjacent Property Acquisitions Land usually does not get cheaper with time. If there is any chance that you may need future expansions, consider those available adjacent properties now.
5. Architect It is never too early to get the designer involved. The Architect can help you evaluate every item in this list and should be able to do so for little or no fee.
6. Money As soon as possible, you will need to identify how much money you'll need, when you'll need it, and where will it come from. An experienced Architect should be able to help you answer all of these questions.
7. List of Current Building Activities If the new building is to replace an existing building you should list all the things that are accommodated in the current spaces, including each vehicle and it's length.
8. List of Current Needs This is different from the Current Activities or you likely would not be considering a new facility.
9. List of Future Needs If you can afford it, it is usually cheaper to build extra space now instead of additions later on. At least consider how you can easily add to the facility in the future.
10. A Good Sense of Humor Anyone with construction experience can tell you that the best facilities are the result of successful problem management. Without a sense of humor you should probably go ahead and invest in 10 cases of Maalox!