PORTLAND, MICH. — Woda Cooper Cos. Inc. has completed Portland School Apartments in Portland, about 25 miles northwest of Lansing. Formerly Portland School, which dates back to 1919, the property is now home to 29 apartment units. The units are affordable for those earning no more than 60 percent of the area median income. Amenities include an elevator, a large community room, fitness center, outdoor BBQ space and gazebo. The school closed in 1996. The property was temporarily used for housing, but has mostly sat vacant. Low-income housing tax credits allocated by Michigan State Housing Development Authority and historic credits from the National Park Service helped fund the $7.4 million project. PNC purchased the tax credits and provided the construction, bridge and permanent loans.
Midwest
PLYMOUTH, MICH. — Alliant Credit Union has provided a $3.5 million loan for the refinancing of a 41,400-square-foot industrial property in Plymouth, about 25 miles west of Detroit. The research and development property is located within Metro West Technology Park. The 10-year loan features a 25-year amortization schedule. Chris Charboneau of Walker & Dunlop arranged the loan. The borrower was not disclosed.
OLATHE, KAN. — Professional Packaging Systems LLC has signed a 247,589-square-foot industrial lease in Olathe. The distributor of packaging equipment will occupy space at 16231 S. Lone Elm Road. Ed Elder and John Stafford of Colliers International represented the landlord, STAG Industrial Holdings LLC. Mike Mitchelson of CBRE represented the tenant.
CHICAGO — Global Builders Inc. has broken ground on a 42,000-square-foot retail development located at 637-647 W. Roosevelt Road in Chicago. The project developer is 635-647 W. Roosevelt Road LLC. Bob’s Discount Furniture will anchor the property and lease two of the three floors. Completion is slated for this fall. James Schutter, Terry Alexa and Luke Sementa of Newmark Knight Frank will handle lease-up of the remaining 10,000 square feet of space on the first floor.
DETROIT — PEA Inc. has opened a new 2,400-square-foot office in downtown Detroit. The site development design firm will occupy the space at the 45 West Grand River building, which is owned by Bedrock. Renovations were recently made to the office, which is now open. PEA, which specializes in civil engineering, land surveying and landscape architecture, operates four offices in southeast Michigan.
At a time when downtown Detroit is in the midst of a civic renaissance, the state of the city’s multifamily real estate market is both a reflection of larger trends and a sign of what might be in store for the Motor City in the years ahead. To keep a pulse on the market, Broder & Sachse Real Estate compiles a market study twice a year to evaluate the rental and occupancy rates of all multifamily properties downtown. Through this research, the continued strength of Detroit’s multifamily market is abundantly clear, with an average occupancy rate of 95.6 percent across downtown in winter 2018. This occupancy rate indicates demand is high, especially coupled by the findings in the Downtown Detroit Partnership’s third Greater Downtown Residential Market Study released in 2017. The study estimated that an additional 10,000 units will be needed over the next five years. The need for these additional 10,000 units means supply — or a relative lack thereof — is also part of the equation. While the number of residential units in Detroit has increased by a great deal on a percentage basis, in relative terms the volume of quality residential product is still somewhat limited. Today, …
DETROIT — Olympia Development has unveiled six projects in The District Detroit, including the restoration of three vacant historic buildings and the construction of three new mixed-use buildings near Little Caesars Arena. These projects will launch Phase II of development in The District Detroit, a $1.4 billion project surrounding the arena. This investment of nearly $200 million will bring more office tenants, storefronts and density to the area, according to Olympia. The projects will encompass more than 400,000 square feet of office space and nearly 70,000 square feet of street-level retail space. Historic renovation projects include 2210 Park Ave.; 1922 Cass Ave.; and 2110 Park Ave. New construction projects include 2715 Woodward Ave.; 111 Henry St.; and 120 Henry St.
CHICAGO — CBRE has arranged the sale of 800-810 Fulton Market in Chicago for $12.2 million. The 25,952-square-foot property is located in the Fulton Market district and has flexible zoning options. The buyer, Thor Equities, has purchased several buildings in the neighborhood. Keely Polczynski of CBRE represented the seller, R2 Cos.
GLENDALE HEIGHTS, ILL. — King Solutions Inc. has signed a 160,669-square-foot industrial lease in Glendale Heights, about 30 miles west of Chicago. The property is located at 500 Regency Drive. This is the first location in the Chicago area for the asset-based 3PL provider of freight transportation management, retail project logistics, order fulfillment and warehousing services. Built on 9.4 acres in 1989, the warehouse features a clear height of 25 feet, seven exterior docks, one interior dock and two drive-in doors. The property can accommodate parking for 200 cars. Michael Morgan, Jim Herbst and Brian Netzky of Colliers International represented King Solutions in the lease transaction. Jeff Janda of Lee & Associates represented the landlord, Gateway.
CHICAGO — Cohen Financial, a division of SunTrust Bank, has secured a $5.8 million loan for the refinancing of Workshop 4200 located at 4200 W. Diversey Ave. in Chicago. The 153,000-square-foot industrial property has been renovated into a workshop for creative and artisan tenants such as photographers, visual and sculptural artists, candle makers, coffee roasters and furniture makers. Workshop 4200 features a gallery space in the common area that hosts events, meetings, happy hours and showcases tenant artwork. Many of the artist tenants have relocated to the building from other properties in the city. Dan Rosenberg and Matt Terpstra of Cohen Financial arranged the loan with Morgan Stanley.