LINCOLN, NEB. — Bellwether Enterprise Real Estate Capital LLC has arranged a $43 million acquisition loan and a $12.8 million equity placement for Links at Lincoln in Nebraska. The 612-unit workforce housing property is situated on 100 acres. Residents have access to the onsite nine-hole golf course. Other amenities include a fitness center, tennis court, playground, hot tub and tanning rooms. Phil Melton and John Roberts of Bellwether Enterprise arranged the $43 million Freddie Mac loan. Todd Johnson of Bellwether Enterprise arranged the $12.8 million equity investment.
AURORA, OHIO — Institutional Property Advisors (IPA) has brokered the sale of Marketplace at Four Corners in Aurora for $55.7 million. The 525,708-square-foot shopping center, located at 7155-7175 Aurora Road, opened in 2002. The property was 99 percent occupied at the time of sale. Anchor tenants include Walmart, Kohl’s Dick’s Sporting Goods and HomeGoods. Scott Wiles, Erin Patton and Craig Fuller of IPA represented the Florida-based seller, which Crain’s Cleveland Business cites as an affiliate of MPG Development. Along with Dean Zang of IPA, the team also secured the buyer, a New York-based 1031 exchange investor. IPA is a division of Marcus & Millichap.
MOUNT PLEASANT, WIS. — Meridian Design Build has started construction on a 307,850-square-foot speculative industrial building in Mount Pleasant in southeast Wisconsin. The facility will feature a clear height of 32 feet, 40 loading docks, four drive-in doors, 242 auto parking spaces and 94 trailer stalls. The building will be able to accommodate up to six tenants. Land and Lakes Development is the project developer. Partners in Design is providing architectural services while Pinnacle Engineering is completing civil engineering work. A timeline for construction was not disclosed. This is the second project Meridian has constructed within the 60-acre Mount Pleasant Business Park. Land and Lakes Development sold the first building, which is leased to Goodwill Industries, to Zilber Property Group last year.
LAKE ZURICH, ILL. — JLL has arranged the sale of a 117,000-square-foot industrial facility in Lake Zurich, about 40 miles northwest of Chicago. The sales price was not disclosed. The facility is located on a 9.9-acre site at 800 N. Church St. The property features a clear height of 24 feet, 275 auto parking spaces, eight docks, fully air-conditioned warehouse space and 19,000 square feet of office space. Steve Trapp and Steve Steinmeyer represented the buyer, an affiliated entity of Midwest Industrial Funds (MIF). Nick Panarese of Van Vlissingen and Co. represented the undisclosed seller. The deal comes just months after MIF announced that the company had raised a new real estate investment fund, MIF Value Fund II LP, to purchase over $150 million of industrial properties over the next few years, according to JLL.
Back in mid-2017, in a piece that was published right here in Heartland Real Estate Business, I talked about what might be in store for the remainder of the year. Specifically, I wrote that while “concerns about oversupply will likely persist in many [Midwestern] markets,” the outlook was not as grim as some industry analysts had been forecasting — a “second wind in the hotel sector” was “helping to calm the waters.” The general sense was that we would continue to see moderate growth. Happily for hoteliers across the Midwest, the market has played out fairly close to those predictions. A generally better-than-expected second half of the year didn’t allay everyone’s concerns, of course. I participated in an investor call recently with some of our lenders and their local analysts, and they were still talking about the threat of oversupply. They expressed some concerns about the prospect of the hotel boom in my home market of Chicago turning into a bust. Oversupply is a valid concern. From where I stand, however, the pattern over the past six to 12 months is not showing any real sign of changing. While the rate of growth has slowed slightly, the demand side of …
CLEVELAND — Institutional Property Advisors (IPA), a division of Marcus & Millichap, has brokered the sale of Statler Arms in downtown Cleveland for $40 million. The 295-unit apartment building is located on the corner of East 12th Street and Euclid Avenue in the Theater District. The property was originally built in 1912 as the 700-room Statler Hotel. The building was then expanded in the 1930s, became an office building in the 1980s and was converted into apartments in 2000. Michael Barron, Joshua Wintermute and Daniel Burkons of IPA represented the buyer. According to The Plain Dealer, Millennia Cos. purchased the building from an affiliate of the California State Teachers’ Retirement System.
SCHAUMBURG, ILL. — Associated Bank has provided a $14.5 million refinancing and construction loan for a multi-tenant retail project in Schaumburg. Known as Woodfield Gatherings, the three-building project is located near Woodfield Mall. The 30,074-square-foot retail property was formerly home to a parking lot for a J.C. Penney store. Chuy’s, Naf Naf Grill, Mod Pizza and Honey Grow have all signed leases at the new development. Chuy’s is currently open for business, while the remaining tenants will open in April. Daniel Barrins of Associated Bank originated the loan on behalf of the borrower, Shorewood Development Group.
ST. CLOUD, MINN. — Novak Construction has completed the remodeling of a 180,000-square-foot retail store occupied by Sam’s Club in St. Cloud in central Minnesota. The property is located at 207 County Road 120. The interior now features a new grocery wing with deli, bakery, produce, meat and dairy departments. The remodeling also features new offices, a training room, pharmacy and Subway sandwich shop. The project also included the installation of new electrical, mechanical, refrigeration systems, flooring, wall finishes and landscaping. Paul Bergin, John Rudd, Sean Raby, Kelsey Green and Dave Baniewicz led the project team for Novak.
CHICAGO — National Express LLC has signed a 98,840-square-foot industrial lease on Chicago’s South Side. The transportation company will occupy the space at 2005 W. 43rd St. starting in the second quarter of this year. The company is relocating from the Fulton Market neighborhood in order to have more parking options. Mitch Adams and Nicole Mentone of CBRE represented the landlord, Avgeris & Associates, in the lease transaction. Chris Gary of NAI Hiffman represented the tenant.
ARNOLD, MO. — Hanley Investment Group Real Estate Advisors has arranged the sale of a 3,500-square-foot retail building occupied by Aspen Dental in Arnold, a southern suburb of St. Louis, for $2.4 million. The newly constructed building is situated on slightly less than one-half acre at 1200 Big Bill Road. An 80-foot billboard enhances the property’s visibility from the highway. Jeff Lefko and Bill Asher of Hanley represented the seller, DLJ Properties LLC. Robert Gamzeh of Triple Net Investment Group represented the buyer, a Chicago-based private investor.