ST. PAUL, MINN. — SARA Investment Real Estate has acquired River Park Plaza, an office building located at 10 River Park Plaza in St. Paul, for an undisclosed sum. The eight-story property features 328,947 square feet of office space. At the time of sale, the building was 88 percent occupied by a variety of tenants, including St. Paul Pioneer Press, Comcast and Gillette Children’s Specialty Healthcare. The transaction is SARA’s first acquisition in the St. Paul market. The name of the seller was not released.
It’s hard to argue with the fact that the Minneapolis and St. Paul metropolitan areas are among the most economically dynamic and socially vibrant cities in the United States. With a thriving business environment, strong growth and impressive demographics, Minnesota consistently ranks in the top five of the most educated states in America, according to the United States Census Bureau. The Twin Cities also boast an expanding workforce, outstanding public transportation network and a booming economy. With 17 Minnesota-based Fortune 500 companies, it’s not surprising that the Twin Cities are competitive on a national and even global scale. The competitive energy and high-level activity in the city’s retail marketplace is being fueled in part by a surge of new retailers. The aggressive entry of new tenants to the market, along with the challenge of a 4 percent vacancy rate, is prompting quality spaces to be absorbed almost immediately. As stated in the Welsh Q2 2015 market report, over 1.1 million square feet of retail space were absorbed during 2015, the highest number in the market in over a decade. The vacancy rate for regional mall trade areas is actually closer to 2.6 percent, with numbers for the Minnetonka/Ridgedale Mall trade …
PAUL, MINN. — JLL Income Property Trust has acquired The Penfield, a 254-unit apartment complex with a grocery store on the ground floor. The Class A property is located in downtown Saint Paul. The purchase price was $65.5 million.
MINNEAPOLIS — RJM Construction, a Minneapolis-based general contractor, will oversee construction of Legacy Lofts, a condominium project in downtown Minneapolis’ mill district. Led by Jim Stanton, the 1 million-square-foot project will include a 14-story and an 18-story tower with underground and aboveground parking along with 374 individually owned units. Plans call for a playground, pet exercise area, fitness room, pool and spa, bike racks, community room, game room and a green roof with lawn bowling. RJM Construction will manage the core and shell construction. Riverdale Ventures LLC, which Stanton owns, will complete the units. Site preparations are underway, with the building scheduled for completion in summer 2018. In addition to RJM, project partners include Oertel Architects and BKBM Engineers.
PAUL, MINN. — Stahl Construction has completed construction of a Hyatt Place hotel located in St. Paul’s historic Custom House building. The rededication of the Custom House building and grand opening of the Hyatt Place was held Sept. 21. The Custom House served as a post office and federal customs port in the early 1900s. It also served as the main postal facility for St. Paul from 1934 through 2010. The riverfront building has been converted into a mixed-use property including a 149-room hotel, 202 apartments and space for a future restaurant. The $125 million renovation of the 748,000-square-foot building has been ongoing over the last 17 months.
WEST SAINT PAUL, MINN. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the $3.9 million sale of Wentworth Plaza, a 12,793-square-foot retail property located at 1590 S. Robert St. in West Saint Paul. National retailers occupy about 75 percent of Wentworth Plaza. Matthew Hazelton, Sean Doyle, Cory Villaume and Adam Prins of Marcus & Millichap’s Minneapolis office represented the seller, a regional developer/owner, in the transaction. The team also secured the buyer, a limited liability company.
MINNEAPOLIS — The Opus Group plans to develop a 30-story multifamily and retail development at 365 Nicollet Ave. in downtown Minneapolis. The pet-friendly high-rise will feature 369 apartments and 9,500 square feet of ground-level retail space. Floor plans will range from alcove units to three-bedroom options, including 36 penthouse suites. All units will include granite countertops, stainless steel appliances and floor-to-ceiling windows. On-site amenities include residential parking, a bike lounge with repair station and seating areas, sauna steam room, a yoga room, hot tub, pool and outdoor cabanas. Construction of the project, which is designed to meet LEED certification, is slated to begin in early October with completion scheduled for summer 2018. Opus Development Co. and Opus Design Build will be the project’s developer and design-builder, respectively. Opus AE Group is the architect and structural engineer of record.
GRAND RAPIDS, MINN. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of Wannigan Apartments, an apartment community located at 1607 E. Highway 169 in Grand Rapids. A private investor acquired the property for $1.7 million. The residential community comprises a six-unit, market-rate apartment building and a 24-unit student housing complex that serves the nearby Itasca Community College. Chris Collins, Adam Haydon, Evan Miller, Dan Linnell, Josh Talberg and Mox Gunderson of Marcus & Millichap’s Minneapolis office represented the seller, a private investor, and the buyer in the deal.
MINNEAPOLIS — CBRE Capital Markets has brokered the sale of Ameriprise Financial Center, a 31-story, 847,667-square-foot office building located at 701 Second Ave. South in downtown Minneapolis. A joint venture between Axar Capital Management and Morning Calm Management acquired the property for $200 million, or $236 per square foot. Built in 2000, the building serves as the global headquarters for Ameriprise Financial. Tom Holtz, Ryan Watts, Judd Welliver and Sonja Dusil of CBRE’s Minneapolis office represented the seller’s advisor and asset manager, Founders Properties LLC, in the transaction.
BROOKLYN CENTER, MINN. — Cushman & Wakefield NorthMarq, on behalf of landlord The AtWater Group, has arranged the lease of 9,800 square feet of office space at Concorde Executive Center in Brooklyn Center, a suburb of Minneapolis. United Food and Commercial Workers will move into the space by Nov. 1. With this lease, the six-story property’s occupancy rate is 67 percent. Aaron Barnard of Cushman & Wakefield Northmarq represented The AtWater Group in the deal.