CHICAGO — Capital One has provided a $7.5 million Freddie Mac small balance loan for the refinancing of a 17-unit apartment building in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood. The borrower, Saxony Capital, purchased the property in January 2018 and renovated it with new appliances, flooring and cabinets. The company also added nine new units and modernized the street-level retail space. Vincent Punzi of Capital One originated the 20-year loan, which features a fixed rate for the initial five years and a floating rate thereafter. The loan also features interest-only payments during the first five years followed by a 30-year amortization schedule.
CHICAGO — Owners Murphy Development Group and CIM Group have opened The Paragon, a 500-unit luxury apartment tower in Chicago. The property lies in the South Loop, between 13th and 14th streets. The 47-story tower features 7,500 square feet of retail space. Solomon Cordwell Buenz served as the architect while Mary Cook Associates designed the interiors. Amenities include a fitness center, yoga room, rooftop sky lounge, clubroom and a 2,100-square-foot coworking space. Each residence features smart home automation for programming lights, outlets, thermostats and speakers. Bozzuto is the property manager. Monthly rental rates start at $1,805 for studios.
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, ILL. — Tropical Smoothie Cafe, a fast-casual concept known for its smoothies and tropical food, is opening its 800th location. The restaurant, located at 115 W. Rand Road in Arlington Heights, is set to open this Friday, Sept. 6. Tropical Smoothie Cafe has grown at a rapid pace this year, opening its 750th location in May. Existing franchisee Hani Halloun, along with first-time franchisees Edward Joubran and Martin Khoshaba, will own and operate the new Arlington Heights location. There are currently seven Tropical Smoothie Cafe locations in the Chicago market, with 18 more in the pipeline.
LISLE, ILL. — Briar Meads Capital has begun a renovation of The Westwood in Lisle. Located at 2441 and 2443 Warrenville Road, the Class A office property spans 300,000 square feet. It currently has approximately 150,000 square feet available for lease. Plans call for a café, fitness center, conference center, tenant lounge and lobby renovations. The project team includes Wright Heerema Architects and J.C. Anderson Construction. Completion is slated for the end of the year. Dan Svachula, Adam Showalter and Allyson Yates of Cushman & Wakefield serve as leasing agents alongside the NAI Hiffman property management team of Dawn Cothern and Sara Bruno.
HANOVER PARK AND WILLOWBROOK, ILL. — ML Realty Partners has acquired two single-tenant industrial buildings in metro Chicago totaling 101,405 square feet. The first is 1565 Hunter Road in Hanover Park within the Central DuPage County submarket. The second is 7100 S. Madison St. in Willowbrook within the I-55 Corridor submarket. Both properties are fully leased. Jeffrey Devine and Steven Disse of Colliers International represented the undisclosed seller. The purchase price was not disclosed.
AURORA, ILL. — Walker & Dunlop Inc. has provided $12.8 million in bridge financing for The Grove Fox Valley, a 156-bed skilled nursing facility in Aurora, approximately 40 miles west of downtown Chicago. The debt was structured and provided by Walker & Dunlop’s bridge lending program, which utilizes its balance sheet to offer short-term, nonrecourse loans for properties that are being repositioned as part of a new business strategy. Led by Joshua Rosen, the Walker & Dunlop team structured the financing to cover 100 percent of the acquisition cost in addition to working capital and capital expenditures for the owner, Cascade Capital Group. The loan includes a nine-month term, flexible prepayment options and full-term, interest-only payments. The plan is to replace the loan with HUD financing in early 2020.
NAPERVILLE, ILL. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of Maple Court Apartments in Naperville for $4.6 million. The 48-unit multifamily property is located at 1135 W. Ogden Ave. Eric Bell of Marcus & Millichap marketed the property on behalf of the seller. Andrean Angelov and Ryan Engle of Marcus & Millichap secured and represented the buyer.
ROLLING MEADOWS, ILL. — GlenStar and Rubenstein Partners LP have launched a $15 million capital improvement plan for Continental Towers, a 910,796-square-foot office complex in Rolling Meadows, about 30 miles northwest of Chicago. This is the second of a two-phase renovation project initiated in 2015. Plans call for a reimagined outdoor terrace with a lounge, grilling areas, fire pits and lawn area. The property’s café and amenity center, which are currently undergoing renovations, will be connected to the new terrace. Project completion is scheduled for second-quarter 2020. Phase I was a $30 million project that included the construction of a new 734-stall parking garage and a full renovation of the 22,000-square-foot fitness center run by Midtown Health Club. Continental Towers is a three-tower property situated on 34 acres at 1701 Golf Road. GlenStar originally acquired the property in 2013 and recapitalized the asset in 2018 with Rubenstein.
CHICAGO — J.C. Anderson has completed the build-out for Colliers International’s Chicago headquarters at 71 S. Wacker Drive. The global real estate services and investment management company has relocated its Chicago headquarters from 200 S. Wacker Drive. The space features raised flooring, open ceilings, new light fixtures and new painting. Irvine Co. owns 71 South Wacker, a 48-story office tower that was completed in 2005.
CHICAGO — Four retailers have joined the tenant lineup at Lincoln Common, a mixed-use project in Chicago. First, Dearborn Denim & Apparel will open a 668-square-foot storefront this fall. The apparel manufacturer sells men’s and women’s jeans that are cut and sewn in Chicago. Lincoln Common will serve as the company’s third location. Slated to open in October, Blowout Junkie will occupy 652 square feet. Lincoln Common will also serve as the third location for the luxury blowout and hairstyle bar. Pharmaca, an integrated pharmacy, will span 2,139 square feet and is expected to open in late fall. Verve Wine, a New York-based retail shop, is set to open a 4,000-square-foot store and wine bar in spring 2020. Each wine is curated by a master sommelier and sourced from small wineries with options starting at $12 per bottle. Hines and McCaffery are the developers for Lincoln Common, which will include 100,000 square feet of retail space, 538 luxury apartment units, 40 condominiums, a five-story boutique office building, 156-room senior living community and more than an acre of open space. Previously signed tenants include Equinox, Velvet Taco, Philz Coffee, Athletico, Compass, Play2Day and Kohler Waters Spa.