CHICAGO — John Hancock, the U.S. division of Manulife Financial Corp., has purchased the 55 West Monroe office tower in Chicago’s Central Loop for $244 million.
The Hearn Co. and Mount Kellett Capital Management LP had owned the 40-story, approximately 804,000-square-foot building through a joint venture since 2011.
“When we purchased 55 West Monroe, we saw a great opportunity to transform the building into a stable, core asset,” says Stephen Hearn, president and CEO of The Hearn Co., “and we’re tremendously proud of the value we have added through renovations and amenity enhancements.”
55 West Monroe was designed by world-renowned architect Helmut Jahn and built in 1981. The building is LEED Gold-certified and located on the southwest corner of Monroe and Dearborn streets, providing access to seven Chicago Transit Authority “L” lines.
According to Hearn, when The Hearn Co. and Mount Kellett purchased 55 West Monroe, it was 68 percent occupied. Today, the Class A tower is 91.6 percent leased.
55 West Monroe was renovated in 2003 and named office building of the year by the Chicago Building Owners and Managers Association in 2007.
Jones Lang LaSalle served as broker for the transaction.
John Hancock’s real estate portfolio consists primarily of office and industrial properties, as well as retail and multifamily residential assets, in metropolitan centers throughout Canada, Asia and the United States. With this purchase, the portfolio now represents $10.5 billion of assets under management with properties totaling more than 39 million square feet.
— Scott Reid