LA PORTE, IND. — Huff, Niehaus & Associates Inc. has brokered the sale of the Best Western Plus hotel in La Porte, about 30 miles west of South Bend, for $4.5 million. The 142-room hotel also features a conference center. GDR Hospitality LLC has operated the hotel for over 10 years. The buyer, BRK Colorado Inc., intends to retain the Best Western Plus franchise and make renovations to the property. Brandt Niehaus of Huff, Niehaus & Associates brokered the transaction.
Welcome to St. Louis, Missouri. Home to nine Fortune 500 companies and the 11-time world champion St. Louis Cardinals franchise. St. Louis currently lays claim to nearly 3 million residents in the metropolitan statistical area and has exemplified economic stability and consistent growth since the Great Recession. Herein we’ll explore one key indicator of the economic health of the region: the slow but steady growth of the St. Louis office market. Demand drivers With approximately 136 million square feet of space, St. Louis is one of the largest office markets in the Midwest, and it is getting larger. Increased demand in the local office market has been predominantly driven by job growth and the consistent decrease in unemployment since its high mark of 10.4 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009. As of November 2017, the region’s unemployment rate is down to a healthy 3.3 percent, compared to a national average of 4.1 percent. Consequently, this demand for office space has resulted in decreased vacancy, increased rental rates and, ultimately, new construction. At the end of the third quarter of 2017, the vacancy rate was 7.6 percent, down from 8.7 percent in 2016. Average asking rental rates were up to …
CLEVELAND, OHIO — Bellwether Enterprise Real Estate Capital LLC has arranged a $57 million loan for the refinancing of One Cleveland Center in Cleveland. Renovated in 2011, the property includes 543,945 square feet of Class A office space, along with a 1,100-square-foot attached parking garage. The 31-story building features an on-site café, dry cleaning service, security and an underground pedestrian connection. Jim Doyle and Ross Halloran of Bellwether arranged the 10-year CMBS loan on behalf of the borrower, Optima 1375 II LLC. Rialto provided the loan, which was used to refinance both the building and parking garage as well as fund tenant improvements.
MARYLAND HEIGHTS, MO. — Midas Hospitality has opened Residence Inn and Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott in Maryland Heights, about 20 miles northwest of St. Louis. The $25 million project is Marriott’s first dual-branded hotel in the St. Louis area. The 119,000-square-foot property is located at 11918 Westline Industrial Drive, formerly home to Clayton Engineering. The hotel includes 96 rooms for the Residence Inn and 88 rooms for the Fairfield Inn & Suites. The property features a fitness center, indoor pool, meeting rooms, guest laundry facilities and backyard seating areas with a grill and pergola. Midas Hospitality will manage the hotel, which was built by sister company MC Hotel Construction.
CHAMPAIGN, ILL. — The Opus Group, in partnership with The Carlyle Group, has broken ground on a 14-story student housing property at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The building will feature 218 units ranging from studios to four-bedroom apartments for a total of 548 beds. The building’s shared amenities will include an indoor basketball court, fitness center and spa on the second floor. Group study rooms and lounges, along with a coffee bar, will provide additional spaces for students to gather on the third floor. The fourth floor will feature a club room with pool tables, ping pong tables and TVs leading to an outdoor amenity space with a pool, fire pits and grilling stations. Completion is slated prior to the 2019 fall academic semester. Opus Development Co. is the project developer, Opus Design Build is the design builder and Opus AE Group is the architect and structural engineer of record. Creative License International is the interior designer. Cardinal Group will manage the property.
DETROIT — Detroit City FC has unveiled plans to open a 75,000-square-foot indoor soccer facility in Detroit. Located in the former City Sports Center ice skating rink at 3401 E. Lafayette St., the new Detroit City Fieldhouse is currently undergoing renovations and is projected to open in September 2018. Detroit City FC is financing the renovations to the new facility, including installing new turf, energy-efficient lighting and providing additional cosmetic upgrades. A clubhouse will eventually be built between the two fields. Detroit City Futbol League, a neighborhood-based recreational adult soccer league that has been in operation since 2010 and includes more than 32 teams, will use the facility. The property will also become home to youth soccer clubs and leagues. City Sports Center formerly served as a practice facility for the Detroit Red Wings.
OMAHA — NorthMarq Capital has arranged a $1.8 million loan for the acquisition of Colonial Park Apartments in Omaha. The 42-unit apartment property is located at 3084 S. 40th St. Josh Larsen of NorthMarq arranged the loan with Readycap Commercial LLC via the Freddie Mac small balance loan program. The 10-year loan features a 30-year amortization schedule.
INDIANAPOLIS — Hillwood has purchased a four-property industrial portfolio in Indianapolis that contains a total of 1.1 million square feet. The purchase price was not disclosed. The Class A portfolio contains the 448,305-square-foot Airwest 12 and the 476,225-square-foot Airwest 14 at 2301 and 2201 Reeves Road (respectively) in Plainfield, as well as the Company Drive Commerce Center in Indianapolis. The Company Drive Commerce Center comprises two buildings featuring 60,480 square feet and 100,800 square feet. “We are proud to expand our footprint in the thriving Indianapolis market,” says Tom Fishman, executive vice president of acquisitions and dispositions for Hillwood. “These acquisitions are consistent with our strategy to acquire and develop high-quality, functional industrial real estate in major U.S. markets.” The Airwest properties were built in 2015. They contain modern, flow-through cross dock designs with 36-foot clear heights, deep truck courts and car and trailer parking. Airwest 12 and 14 are situated off Interstate 70, providing access to interstates 465, 65 and 74 in the southwest industrial submarket. These routes access Chicago, Columbus, Cincinnati, Louisville and St. Louis. They also position the Airwest properties within a single day’s drive to more than half of the U.S. and Canadian population. The Company …
CHICAGO — Heartland Bank & Trust Co. has provided a $26.5 million refinancing of 10 industrial and flex properties across metro Chicago. The portfolio of properties comprises the majority of the remaining assets within Midwest Industrial Funds’ MIF Value Fund LP. The portfolio totals over 800,000 square feet. The properties are occupied by more than 40 tenants with an overall occupancy rate in excess of 90 percent.
MADISON, WIS. — Colliers International has brokered the sale of an 87,975-square-foot mixed-use property in Madison for $7.9 million. The property, located at 2202 W. Beltline Highway, is 100 percent leased to SSM Health and Mattress Firm. Tom Shepherd of Colliers represented the seller, Orlando Partnership GP. An affiliate of Krausz Cos. Inc., WBLH Madison LLC, purchased the asset.
