CHICAGO — Velvet Taco, a Texas-based fast casual restaurant, will open its second Chicago location at Lincoln Common, a mixed-use project located in the heart of Chicago’s Lincoln Park. The restaurant will occupy 2,572 square feet beginning in mid- to late-2019. Lincoln Common, currently under development by McCaffery Brokerage and Hines, will feature residential, office, dining, fitness and retail space. Previously announced tenants include Kohler Waters Spa and Equinox Fitness.
HANOVER PARK, ILL. — Schnidt Cartage, a warehouse and distribution company, has renewed its 68,208-square-foot industrial lease in Hanover Park, a western suburb of Chicago. The property is located at 1625 Hunter Road. Mike Plumb and Andrew Block of Lee & Associates represented the owner, Prologis. Jeff Janda of Lee & Associates represented the tenant.
NAPERVILLE, ILL. — Evergreen Real Estate Group has unveiled plans to upgrade and expand Martin Avenue Apartments, a 122-unit affordable seniors housing community in Naperville. The $38.6 million project will be completed in partnership with the community’s owner, Naperville Elderly Homes Inc. The units will be upgraded with new bathrooms, flooring, light fixtures and air-conditioning units. A new five-story wing will add 68 more units. Construction is scheduled to begin late this spring with completion slated for late 2019 for the existing structure and mid-2020 for the new wing. Evergreen Construction Co. and Wight Construction Services are the general contractors for the project. Worn Jerabek Wiltse Architects is the project architect. Evergreen will continue to oversee operations after the renovations are complete. Working in partnership with the Illinois Housing Development Authority, U.S. Bancorp CDC and Wintrust Bank, Evergreen secured nearly $20 million in low-income housing tax credit equity to help finance the project. Other financial partners included the city of Naperville, DuPage County and the DuPage Housing Authority.
WILLOWBROOK, ILL. — Essex Realty Group Inc. has brokered the $15 million sale of Waterfall Glen in Willowbrook, a southwestern suburb of Chicago. The 142-unit condominium complex, located along Mockingbird Lane, features a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom floor plans. The property is comprised of 19 buildings on 24.2 acres. Matt Welke and Matt Feo of Essex represented the private seller, while Brian Kochendorfer, Brian Karmowski and Troy Beebe represented the buyer.
ALTON AND BELLEVILLE, ILL. — Strawberry Fields REIT LLC has acquired two skilled nursing facilities near the Illinois-Missouri border for $5.9 million. The properties total 361 beds and include Integrity Healthcare of Alton in Alton and Integrity Healthcare of Belleville in Belleville. Both cities are suburbs of St. Louis and are located in Illinois. Integrity Healthcare Management will continue to operate the two facilities under a master lease agreement. The average occupancy in the homes is 48 percent. Among the residents at the two skilled nursing facilities, 6 percent are Medicare patients, 88 percent are Medicaid patients and 5 percent are private pay.
CHICAGO — Tucker Development has secured three new retail leases for its mixed-use development known as 900 West in Chicago’s Fulton Market. The retailers include Kinton Ramen, a Toronto-based ramen bar; Jeni’s Splendid Ice Creams; and Independence, an upscale menswear boutique. All three businesses plan to open their new locations sometime this year. Completed in 2017, 900 West is the adaptive reuse of 10 historic buildings in the 900 block of West Randolph Street. Together, the buildings offer more than 45,000 square feet of street-level retail space and 45,000 square feet of office space on the upper floors. The office space is fully leased by co-working provider Spaces and private equity firm Parker Gale. Current retailers include lululemon, Bluemercury and Bonci Pizzeria.
OAK BROOK AND WARRENVILLE, ILL. — Cronheim Mortgage has arranged a $47.7 million loan for the acquisition of Oak Brook Gateway and Cornerstone I at Cantera in suburban Chicago. Oak Brook Gateway is a multi-tenant office building in Oak Brook. Tenants include Lewis University, the U.S. Census Bureau, Thomson Reuters and Oxford Bank. Cornerstone I at Cantera is a multi-tenant office building in Warrenville with 80 percent occupancy. A national lender provided the 10-year loan, which features an interest rate of 4.84 percent and a 30-year amortization schedule. The loan represented 75 percent of the acquisition price. Fairbridge Partners was the borrower.
NASHVILLE, ILL. — Stan Johnson Co. has brokered the $15.5 million sale of a 276,887-square-foot manufacturing facility in Nashville, about 55 miles east of St. Louis. Grupo Antolin, an automotive parts supplier, has occupied the building for 30 years and recently completed an expansion and renovation. Mike Sladich and Mollie Alteri of Stan Johnson Co. represented the seller, Agracel Inc. Jason Powell and Colin Couch of Stan Johnson Co. represented the buyer, a Blufton, S.C.-based private investment group managed by David Strong and Nick Dzendzel.
CHICAGO — Skender has started construction on the conversion of the former Soft Sheen building into a middle and high school for Perspectives Charter Schools (PCS). The 100,000-square-foot building is located at 8522 S. Lafayette Ave. in Chicago’s Chatham neighborhood. The project will include classrooms, two gymnasiums and an auditorium with staircase seating. Skender is working with Perkins + Will and ConopCo Project Management. Completion is slated for August. Founded in 1997, PCS is one of the first charter schools in Illinois. PCS manages tuition-free public schools for grades 6-12 in the Auburn Gresham, Bronzeville and South Loop neighborhoods. Soft Sheen was a hair care products company that was acquired by L’Oreal.
ELGIN, ILL. — The Boulder Group has arranged the sale of a single-tenant property net leased to Jewel-Osco in Elgin for $14.8 million. The 69,129-square-foot building, located at 1660 Larking Ave., was remodeled in 2009. Jewel-Osco has approximately 19 years remaining on its lease. Randy Blankstein and Jimmy Goodman of Boulder represented both parties in the transaction. A Los Angeles-based real estate firm completing a 1031 tax-deferred exchange purchased the asset. A Southwest-based private real estate investment company was the seller.
