BATTLE CREEK, MICH. — Industrial Partners USA has purchased 55 acres in Battle Creek with plans to develop a 270,000-square-foot speculative industrial building. Battle Creek Unlimited (BCU) sold the land for an undisclosed price. Project plans call for 7,000 square feet of office space, 16 truck docks and 130 car parking spaces. Industrial Partners USA is a joint venture between Clark Logic and Great Lakes Capital. The developers expect to break ground later this summer with completion slated for March 2021. The total investment is estimated at $11 million. BCU is a nonprofit corporation that serves as the business and economic development arm for Battle Creek.
DETROIT — Greystone Bel Real Estate Advisors has arranged the sale of Manning Manor in Detroit for $2 million. The 78-unit apartment community was originally built in 1926. It is located at 2258 W. Grand Blvd. A large majority of the units are one-bedroom floor plans. Buyer and seller information was not disclosed, but the property has received many recent capital improvements, according to Greystone Bel.
BIG RAPIDS, MICH. — The Boulder Group has brokered the $1.8 million sale of a 24,034-square-foot property occupied by Harbor Freight in Big Rapids, about 60 miles north of Grand Rapids. The single-tenant building is located at 408 Perry Ave. Harbor Freight, a discount tool retailer, recently signed a 10-year lease for the newly renovated building. Randy Blankstein and Jimmy Goodman of Boulder represented the seller, a West Coast-based real estate firm. A Midwest-based buyer purchased the asset.
DETROIT — Two construction cranes now occupy the site that eventually will be home to the highly anticipated Hudson Tower project in downtown Detroit. The cranes signal that vertical construction can begin and Bedrock is able to bring the project into the next phase of development. Plans call for a 680-foot-tall mixed-use tower that will include 1.3 million square feet of retail, office, hotel, residential and public space. Bedrock, the real estate arm of billionaire businessman Dan Gilbert, founder of Quicken Loans, initially broke ground on the project in December 2017. It is now slated for completion in 2024. Southfield-based Barton Malow Co. is the general contractor. The project is a redevelopment of the former J.L. Hudson department store, which closed in 1984 and was imploded in 1998.
INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis-based Cornerstone Cos. Inc. has acquired nine healthcare real estate properties in six states totaling more than 300,000 square feet for $59.9 million. Cornerstone MOB Fund V, a private equity fund focused solely on medical real estate, was used to acquire the assets. The properties include: Northwest Medical Center in Poplar Bluff, Mo.; Danville Polyclinic in Danville, Ill.; PACE of Southeast Michigan Center in Eastpointe, Mich.; The Eye Institute of Paducah in Paducah, Ky.; The Surgery Center of Columbus in Columbus, Ga.; and The Jervey Eye Group portfolio, which is a four-property portfolio in Greenville, S.C. All of the assets are supported by net leases and the tenants are a mix of health systems and specialty physician groups.
AUBURN HILLS, MICH. — The final phase of demolition for The Palace of Auburn Hills, the former home of the Detroit Pistons basketball team, took place over the weekend. The more than 20,000-seat venue first opened in 1988. The Pistons played at the arena from 1988 until 2017. The team won all three of its titles at the arena, including NBA championships in 1989, 1990 and 2004. The Pistons now play in downtown Detroit at Little Caesars Arena. Schostak Brothers & Co., a development company based in Livonia, Mich., purchased part of The Palace in a joint venture, according to local media reports. Plans call for a mixed-use development on the site. Watch the demolition video here.
DETROIT — Detroit-based Quicken Loans has filed paperwork for its initial public offering. The company, known for its personal finance and consumer service brands such as Rocket Mortgage, has filed under the new name Rocket Cos. Inc. The application has been made for listing the common stock on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol RKT. The number of shares to be offered and the price range for the proposed offering have yet to be determined. Billionaire businessman Dan Gilbert, founder and chairman of Quicken, has been instrumental in Detroit’s commercial real estate scene. Bedrock, his full-service real estate firm, maintains a portfolio of more than 100 properties totaling approximately 18 million square feet.
Taubman Centers Reopens All Properties Across Portfolio Following Temporary Closures Due to COVID-19
BLOOMFIELD HILLS, MICH. — Taubman Centers Inc. (NYSE: TCO) has reopened all of its properties in the United States and Asia. Most U.S. centers were temporarily closed beginning March 19 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Bloomfield Hills, Mich.-based Taubman says it has been gradually reopening centers using enhanced safety protocols in compliance with local, state and federal laws. Nearly 85 percent of stores within Taubman’s portfolio have reopened, according to Robert Taubman, chairman and CEO. Taubman’s portfolio consists of 26 super-regional and outlet shopping centers. The company is currently being sued by Simon Property Group over a merger agreement, the latest details of which can be found here.
GRAND RAPIDS, MICH. — Industrial Commercial Properties (ICP) has purchased a Knoll manufacturing facility located at 4300 36th St. in Grand Rapids for an undisclosed price. The 619,165-square-foot building sits on 37 acres adjacent to the Gerald R. Ford International Airport. ICP plans to make a multi-million-dollar investment to update both interior and exterior elements of the property. Bob Horn of JLL brokered the sale. Knoll is a design firm that produces office seating, storage, desks and other accessories.
TROY, MICH. — L. Mason Capitani CORFAC International has brokered the sale of a 70,000-square-foot office building located at 550 Stephenson Highway in Troy. The sales price was undisclosed. The multi-tenant property was 97 percent leased at the time of sale. Mason L. Capitani, a principal with the brokerage firm, represented the buyer, California-based LREH Michigan LLC. L. Mason Capitani will oversee leasing efforts moving forward while the company’s affiliate, Liberty Property & Asset Management, will serve as property manager.