EVANSTON AND OAK PARK, ILL. — Albion Residential, along with general contractor Clark Construction, has broken ground on two apartment projects in suburban Chicago. Albion Evanston will include 268 apartment units with 6,800 square feet of retail space. Existing buildings on the development site will be demolished this month with construction slated to begin in August. The property is scheduled to open in the third quarter of 2019. The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company provided project financing. Albion Oak Park will include 265 apartment units and 8,000 square feet of retail space. Construction of the building’s foundation is underway. CIBC and Associated Bank provided project financing. Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture is designing both projects.
AURORA, ILL. — Quantum Real Estate Advisors Inc. has brokered the sale of two retail properties in Aurora for an undisclosed price. The sale includes a 31,000-square-foot retail center and a single-tenant building occupied by Walgreens. The retail center was fully leased at the time of sale. Tenants include Dollar General, O’Reilly Auto Parts and Subway. Constructed in 2002, the Walgreens property is approximately 15,000 square feet. Chad Firsel of Quantum represented the seller, a Chicago-based investor. Daniel Waszak of Quantum represented the buyer, a Colorado-based private investor.
CHICAGO — American Street Capital (ASC) has arranged a $3.5 million bridge loan for the acquisition of a 25,000-square-foot office building in Chicago’s River North neighborhood. Built in 1920, the five-story building is currently vacant and in need of repairs. The buyer plans to renovate the property to include modern floor plans and amenities for tenants. Igor Zhizhin of ASC arranged the floating-rate loan, which features a full term 18 month interest reserve. A commercial bank provided the loan.
CHICAGO — Colliers International has finalized its previously announced strategic investment in Harrison Street Real Estate Capital LLC for $450 million. An additional $100 million will be payable to Harrison Street in 2022 based on the achievement of certain performance targets. Colliers has acquired 75 percent of the Chicago-based real estate investment firm, which focuses on the education, healthcare and self-storage sectors. The senior management team of Harrison Street owns the balance of the equity. Christopher Merrill, Harrison Street’s co-founder and CEO, will lead operations and remain the largest individual shareholder. Colliers expects annual revenue from management fees to range between $100 million and $115 million. Harrison Street currently maintains approximately $14.6 billion in assets under management.
CHICAGO — Baker Development Corp. has completed ELEVATE Lincoln Park located at 930 W. Altgeld St. in Chicago. The 11-story luxury apartment building includes 191 units. The property features a pool, grill area, demonstration kitchen, fitness center and dog run. Floor plans include studios, one- and two-bedroom units, as well as penthouse units. Monthly rents start at $1,985.
GURNEE, ILL. — Englewood Construction has broken ground on a 6,524-square-foot Outback Steakhouse restaurant in Gurnee, located about 45 miles north of Chicago. Outback is relocating from 5642 Northridge Drive in Gurnee. Janet Pugh is the project architect. Tampa-based Bloomin’ Brands is the parent company of Outback. Englewood has recently completed Outback restaurants in Downers Grove, Ill.; Springfield, Ill.; and Merrillville, Ind.
CHICAGO — Kiser Group has brokered the sale of a .37-acre development site in Chicago’s Albany Park for $1.6 million. The buyer, Evergreen Real Estate Group, plans to develop 48 affordable housing units on the site, which is located at 3441 W. Montrose Ave. The seller was not disclosed. Michael D’Agostino and Jake Parker of Kiser brokered the transaction.
CHICAGO — Jameson Commercial has arranged the sale of a six-unit multifamily building in Chicago’s Lakeview neighborhood for $1.2 million. The property is located at 1644 W. Addison St. Mark Kishtow of Jameson represented the undisclosed buyer.
ROCHELLE AND HAMPSHIRE, ILL. — Love’s Travel Stops has purchased two development sites in Illinois. The first site is a 17-acre parcel near I-88 in Rochelle, about 30 miles south of Rockford. Dave Schmidt and Linda Kost of Realty Metrix Commercial represented Love’s in the sale. Intermodal Capital Holdings LP was the seller. Love’s also purchased a 99-acre farm in Hampshire, about 40 miles east of Rockford. Schmidt represented the seller, the Henning family. The site, located near I-90, will also include an Arby’s restaurant. Construction of both travel stops is expected to begin this month. Love’s provides truck drivers and motorists with 24-hour access to places to purchase gasoline, diesel fuel, travel items and snacks. The company plans to open more than 40 new locations this year, according to Realty Metrix.
DOWNERS GROVE, ILL. — PREMIER Design + Build Group LLC has broken ground on Bridge Point Downers Grove, a three-building, 678,858-square-foot speculative industrial development in suburban Chicago. Bridge Development Partners LLC is the developer. The 57-acre infill site is located at the intersection of I-88 and I-355. Buildings 1 and 2 will feature a clear height of 32 feet, 33 exterior truck docks and four drive-in doors. Building 3, totaling 291,345 square feet, will feature a clear height of 36 feet, 40 exterior truck docks and two drive-in doors. Cornerstone Architects Ltd. is providing architectural services and McCallum Associates is providing landscaping services. Swift Structural Design is the structural engineer while SPACECO is the civil engineer. Jason West, David Friedland, Sean Henrick, Michael Magliano and Doug Pilcher of Cushman & Wakefield will represent Bridge in lease-up of the property. The construction is scheduled to be completed in early 2019.