GRAND ISLAND, NEB. — Dougherty Funding LLC has provided a $7 million loan for the acquisition of Conestoga Mall in Grand Island, about 100 miles west of Lincoln. The 556,795-square-foot shopping center is located at 3404 W. 13th St. and is 93 percent leased. Tenants include Sears, Best Buy, JC Penney, Dillard’s and Younkers. Dougherty served as lead lender and servicer for the loan on behalf of Conestoga Realty LLC. Joel J. Gorjian of Uber Capital Group LLC arranged the loan.
GRAND RAPIDS, MICH. — Grand Valley Medical Specialists (GVMS) has signed a 14,180-square-foot lease to open a medical practice in Grand Rapids. The property, which will accommodate more physicians and patients than the former 10,363-square-foot location on Wealthy Street, is located at 1000 E. Paris Avenue Southeast. GVMS currently employs 15 doctors and five advanced practice providers. GVMS provides primary patient care to the whole family, from infants to adults, through its pediatric, family and internal medicine practices. Although GVMS began seeing patients at the East Paris location on July 18, renovations to the interior of the building are underway, including upgrades to the common areas and restrooms, as well as a remodeling of the lobby. MB Real Estate-health care, the lessor, is managing the renovation project. Mary Anne Wisinski-Rosely and Jason Makowski of NAI Wisinski of West Michigan negotiated the lease transaction.
LA GRANGE, ILL. — The Opus Group has completed Uptown La Grange, a luxury apartment community located in the western Chicago suburb of La Grange. The 254-unit, 450,000-square-foot property sits on the former site of the Rich Port YMCA. Floor plans range from studios to three-bedroom units. Amenities include a rooftop terrace deck, dog run, fitness center and clubroom. Opus broke ground on the project in November 2015, and the first residents moved in during April 2017. Opus Development Co. served as the project developer, while Opus Design Build was the design builder and Opus AE Group was the architect and structural engineer. Greystar will lease and manage the complex.
LENEXA, KAN. — SpringHill Suites by Marriott has opened at 17190 W. 87th St. Parkway in Lenexa. The $20 million, 86,000-square-foot hotel consists of five stories and 124 rooms. The property features a 1,300-square-foot meeting space, lobby bar, fitness center and indoor pool. Part of the Lenexa City Center development, the hotel also includes 1,600 square feet of retail space with outdoor seating. Orangetheory Fitness is located in the hotel’s storefront. Midas Hospitality is managing the hotel. Sister company MC Hotel Construction was the general contractor.
LANSING, MICH. — Pillar Financial has provided an $11 million loan for the acquisition of Mill Pond Village in Lansing. The manufactured housing community is located seven miles from Michigan State University and the State Capitol at 1500 Old Mill Lane. Built in 1973, the property contains 356 sites. The property was 93 percent occupied at time of sale. Adam Klingher of Pillar originated the 15-year Fannie Mae loan, which features a 30-year amortization schedule. Pillar sourced the transaction through Chris San Jose of Yale Realty & Capital Advisors. A family-owned private investment company was the borrower.
CINCINNATI — NorthMarq Capital has arranged a $5.6 million loan for the refinancing of North Park Townhomes in Cincinnati. The 122-unit property is located at 300 Cardinal Drive. Noah Juran of NorthMarq arranged the 15-year loan, which features a 30-year amortization schedule. A life insurance company provided the loan. The borrower was not disclosed.
WARREN, MICH. — Old Navy has signed a 12,688-square-foot at Warren Tech Plaza in Warren, a suburb of Detroit. The 311,00-square-foot retail center is now 90 percent leased. Other recent tenant additions include Marshalls, DSW, Five Below, Ulta and Walmart. Petzold Enterprises acquired the property in 2014. Originally opened in 1960, the shopping center has undergone extensive improvements including an L-shape design, improved site lines, covered sidewalks and upscale finishes. The renovations team included Tiseo Architects, design firm R. Berlin & Associates, and NCS Construction Services.
CHICAGO — A joint venture between real estate investment firms AXA Investment Managers – Real Assets and Blue Vista Capital Management has purchased University Center Chicago, a 1,732-bed student housing complex located at 525 S. State St. in Chicago’s South Loop district. Educational Advancement Fund (EAF) sold the asset to the joint venture for $201 million. University Center Chicago was jointly developed in 2004 by three major universities in Chicago – Columbia College Chicago, DePaul University and Roosevelt University. The 702,000-square-foot project features student housing, dining facilities, recreational areas, music practice rooms, conference center operations and ground-floor retail space. As part of the transaction, the three universities each negotiated a long-term lease with the new ownership to remain in the facility. John Jaeger, Dan Cohen and M.J. Zaring of CBRE represented EAF in the transaction in partnership with CBRE’s National Student Housing Team, headed by Jaclyn Fitts and William Vonderfecht. CBRE also partnered with Kevin Hoecker and Chris Good of RBC Capital Markets, as well as RBC’s Real Estate Investment Banking team. Peter Marino and Molly Green of CBRE’s Chicago office partnered with the Dallas CBRE Capital Markets Debt & Structured Finance team of Mike Bryant, Jon Wooton and Ben …
Rapid growth in the tech sector is dramatically impacting the St. Louis office market. The city boasted an increase of 6,220 high-tech jobs during the last four years, over 2,000 of which were generated in the past year alone. Given the total number of tech jobs in St. Louis is 57,300, this amounts to a healthy growth rate of 10.9 percent. From well-known companies like Square Inc., Yurbuds and Answers.com to newer ones such as LockerDome, Aisle411 Inc. and MediBeacon Inc., the St. Louis region is a growing hot spot for innovative, new and expanding companies. These companies include leaders in the areas of plant and life sciences as well as financial services, information technology, advanced manufacturing and even rapidly growing pet care industries. Significant healthcare and biotechnology institutions in the region include Pfizer, Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, Solae Co. and Sigma-Aldrich. As capital injections slow in the coastal markets, St. Louis’ startup scene is thriving, attracting talent, new companies and investors from across the globe. According to Forbes, the city was named the fastest-growing metropolis for startups in 2016. Analytical website fivethirtyeight.com reaffirmed St. Louis’ increased appetite for startups, attributing the uptick in part to a combination of …
CUDAHY, WIS. — Colliers International has arranged the sale of Mitchell Industrial Park in Cudahy, about seven miles south of Milwaukee. The sales price was not disclosed. The 10-building, 879,704-square-foot park is located near the intersection of College and Pennsylvania avenues. A joint venture between WHI Real Estate Partners LP and BK Ace Industrial Holdings LLC sold the property to Deerfield, Ill.-based Oak Realty Group Inc. BK Ace Industrial Holdings had previously purchased the business park from CenterPoint Properties in 2014. Notable tenants include DHL-Air Express International, Menasha Packaging, Mattress Firm and National Packaging. Tom Shepherd, Jeff Devine and Steven Disse of Colliers brokered the transaction. Pat Hake and Bill Langhoff of Colliers will manage leasing efforts.