CHICAGO — Chicago-based real estate investor and operator Northpond Partners has partnered with a southeast U.S. pension fund to form Northpond Retail Partners, a $200 million investment vehicle. The fund will target the acquisition of unanchored neighborhood retail centers with an initial focus across the Southeast and select Sunbelt markets. As an all-cash buyer, the partnership will target properties housing convenience, necessity and service-oriented tenants. Categories typically include food and beverage, medical, fitness, and health and beauty. Northpond says the multi-tenant properties ideally contain smaller spaces ranging from 1,000 to 5,000 square feet per tenant.
SKOKIE, ILL. — Home furnishing retailer Pottery Barn is relocating its store at Westfield Old Orchard, joining Arhaus, Puttshack and Zara in the former Lord & Taylor space set to open in summer 2024. Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield owns Westfield Old Orchard shopping mall, which is undergoing redevelopment. The center is set to welcome six new retailers over the next year. Jewelry brand Little Words Project and Canadian women’s fashion brand Aritzia are opening in December. Urban Outfitters is opening in January, and Italian intimates store Intimissimi is slated to open in the spring. Westfield Old Orchard will also welcome new dining options next year, including local all-day lounge Cupitol and Cafe Castemila, an independently owned café and bakery. The redevelopment of the former Lord & Taylor department store is part of a multi-phase plan at Westfield Old Orchard that was first announced in 2022. Plans also call for new residences, dining establishments, wellness facilities and outdoor amenities such as a public park and event space. More detailed plans will be unveiled in 2024.
WEST CHICAGO, ILL. — SVN Chicago Commercial has brokered the sale of Tower Station Center in West Chicago for $2.4 million. The 11-unit retail center, located at 956 N. Neltnor Blvd., is 73 percent occupied. Aldi shadow anchors the property. Ron Weissenhofer and Karen Kulczycki of SVN represented the undisclosed seller. After six months of negotiations, the property sold to an out-of-state buyer completing a 1031 exchange.
SCHAUMBURG, ILL. — Entre Commercial Realty has brokered the sale of a 111,594-square-foot industrial building located at 933 Remington Road in the Chicago suburb of Schaumburg. The sales price was undisclosed. The property, which features modern office finishes, is located within the Woodfield Business Center. Dan Benassi, Dan Jones and Sam Deihs of Entre represented the seller, a private investor who wished to sell the building in advance of a pending lease expiration in early 2024. Phil Reiff of JLL represented the buyer, NBS Corp., which plans to relocate from its current facility in Elk Grove Village.
SCHAUMBURG, ILL. — Colliers has arranged the sale of a 178,000-square-foot office building in the Chicago suburb of Schaumburg for an undisclosed price. The vacant building at 955 American Lane formerly served as Experian’s regional headquarters. Experian vacated the property in August of this year. Built in 1999, the four-story property features a shared parking deck, conference center, training room, cafeteria, fitness center, outdoor volleyball court and walking path around Woodfield Lake. The building is situated just west of Woodfield Mall and is divisible for up to seven tenants. Alissa Adler and John Homsher of Colliers represented the seller, Orion Schaumburg LLC. A private investor purchased the asset. Jon Connor and Steve Kling of Colliers also assisted with the transaction.
CHICAGO — Specialty insurance provider Argo Group has signed a new long-term lease at 24 E. Washington St., also known as the Marshall Field & Co. building, in Chicago. Argo’s lease is for roughly 20,500 square feet on the ninth floor. The company plans to begin operating out of its new office in early 2024. In 2021, owner Brookfield Properties completed a major restoration of the historic building, which has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1978. Built in the early 1900s, the building served as the flagship location of the Marshall Field department store. The property rises seven stories and totals 636,000 square feet. This year, Ferraro North America, Olam International and Spot Logistics also signed leases at the property. Jeff Miller and Corey Siegrist of JLL represented Argo in its lease, while Jack O’Brien and JD Parcheta of The Telos Group represented Brookfield.
CRYSTAL LAKE, ILL. — Thinnes Transport Inc. has renewed its 91,267-square-foot industrial lease at 450 Congress Parkway in the Chicago suburb of Crystal Lake. John Joyce, Kenneth Franzese and John Cassidy of Lee & Associates represented the tenant, which is a family-owned freight transportation and logistics company. Dan Jones of Entre Commercial Realty represented the landlord, STAG Industrial Holdings.
BENSENVILLE, ILL. — Venture One Real Estate, through its acquisition fund VK Industrial VI LP, has acquired a three-building industrial portfolio totaling 88,741 square feet in the Chicago suburb of Bensenville. The purchase price was undisclosed. The properties, all located on County Line Road, were constructed in 1991. The buildings are demised into 10 units, each of which is equipped with a dock, drive-in door and office space. Eric Fischer and Jackson Elder of Cushman & Wakefield represented Venture One. Seller information was not provided. VK Industrial VI is co-sponsored by Venture One and Kovitz Investment Group.
By J. Byron Brazier Equitable development is a knotty concept. In theory, development equity sounds easy and essential. In practice, it’s not clearly defined and not easily sustainable — economically, socially or politically. Equitable development is generally seen as an approach that revitalizes and empowers disinvested communities by meeting residents’ wants and needs, diminishing disparities and spurring economic growth, ensuring residents benefit from such growth and creating conditions for people to live healthy and happy lives. That definition is accurate but incomplete. Equitable development has multiple meanings, some less intuitive than others. Chicago lawyer Danielle Meltzer Cassel says there are three ways to define development equity. The first is the one above, which is the direct model of equitable development. This model rectifies inequality through what development directly produces, such as affordable housing in areas where there’s little or no such housing, good jobs for people who are unemployed or underemployed, greater access to quality healthcare and education, and other resources that allow communities to thrive. There are two other definitions, the indirect model and what Cassel calls the procedural model of equitable development. The indirect model involves real estate developments that do not directly benefit disinvested communities, such as …
DARIEN, ILL. — Mid-America Real Estate Corp. has arranged the sale of Chestnut Court in Darien, a southwest suburb of Chicago. The 172,697-square-foot shopping center is home to tenants such as Ross Dress for Less and Jo-Ann Fabric. Rick Drogosz, Ben Wineman and Joe Girardi of Mid-America represented the seller, IRC Retail Centers/DRA Advisors. First-Tek Inc. was the buyer, and Pine Tree was the property manager.