MINNETONKA, MINN. — A joint venture between LeCesse Development Corp., Morgan Management and UC Funds has broken ground on RiZE at Opus Park, a 322-unit apartment community in Minnetonka, a western suburb of Minneapolis. The $73 million project is a redevelopment of the Opus Business Park. The property will feature studio, one- and two-bedroom units. Plans call for construction of a six-story building and a 492-car parking garage. Amenities will include a clubhouse, fitness center, movie theater, resort-style pool and courtyards. US Bank provided construction financing. Humphreys & Partners Architects is the project architect, while Stonebridge Construction is the general contractor. Loucks Engineering is providing civil engineering services and Terracon is serving as environmental consultant. Completion is slated for winter 2018.
ST. PETERS, MO. — Developer GBT Realty Corp. is nearing completion of The Shoppes at Mid Rivers, a 270,000-square-foot shopping center in St. Peters, a suburb of St. Louis. The project is the largest retail development in the St. Louis metro area in nearly a decade, according to GBT. Burlington, Marshalls, HomeGoods and Aspen Dental are set to open at the property in September. Academy Sports + Outdoors and Famous Footwear will open in October. Ross, OshKosh B’gosh, Five Below and Nail Lounge will open in the first quarter of 2018. Approximately 30,000 square feet of space remain available for lease. Knoebel Construction Inc. served as general contractor.
MINNEAPOLIS — Deering Commercial Mortgage LLC has arranged a $16.5 million loan for the refinancing of a student housing property in Minneapolis. The 92-unit property, called 1301 University, is located near the University of Minnesota. The building features studio, one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom units. Amenities include a fitness center and underground parking. Len Deering of Deering Commercial Mortgage arranged the 10-year loan. Goldman Sachs provided the loan.
BLOOMINGTON, MINN. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of an 82,350-square-foot industrial building in Bloomington for $3 million. The property is located at 8301 Grand Avenue South. U.S. Venture, a distributor of energy, automotive and lubricants products, was the seller. As part of the sale, U.S. Venture executed a 10-year, triple-net lease and will remain in the building. U.S. Lubricants, a division of U.S. Venture, will continue to use the building as a bulk storage and distribution center. Other tenants include Nikolas Bakery and Companies to Classrooms, a non-profit organization that donates office supplies and furniture to local schools. Marc Paylor and Claire Roberts of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller in the transaction. Nick Leviton of Colliers International secured and represented the buyer, a limited liability company.
CHICAGO — Structured Development has acquired a 40,000-square-foot loft office building in Chicago’s Lincoln Park for an undisclosed price. The property is located at 855 W. Blackhawk St., adjacent to another property that Structured Development purchased in 2015. Together, the sites will be redeveloped as The Shops at Big Deahl, a 200,000-square-foot mixed-use property. Demolition of the building located at 1450 N. Dayton St. is underway, with construction of The Shops slated to begin in early 2018. Callison RTKL is the project architect.
Aries/Conlon Capital Arranges $31.5M Refinancing Loan for Office Property in Buffalo Grove, Illinois
BUFFALO GROVE, ILL. — Aries/Conlon Capital has arranged a $31.5 million loan for the refinancing of Riverwalk Phase II in Buffalo Grove, a northern suburb of Chicago. The 258,995-square-foot office property, located at 2100 E. Lake Cook Road, serves as the corporate headquarters for CVS Caremark. The Class A building is 75 percent leased, with PrimeSource Healthcare serving as the other anchor tenant. Amenities include a fitness center, conference room and deli. Accesso Partners was the borrower.
HUBER HEIGHTS, OHIO — Marcus & Millichap’s Institutional Property Advisors division has brokered the sale of North Heights Plaza shopping center in Huber Heights, a suburb of Dayton. The sales price was not disclosed. The 182,453-square-foot retail center is located at 8280 Old Troy Pike. Dick’s Sporting Goods and Big Lots anchor the property, which was built in 1990. Other tenants include Five Below, Great Clips, Sally Beauty Supply, Verizon Wireless and Firehouse Subs. Craig Fuller, Scott Wiles and Erin Patton of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller, a national real estate investment trust, and procured the buyer, a private real estate investment fund.
Wolverine to Convert Historic Orphanage Into $16M Affordable Housing Property in Marquette, Michigan
MARQUETTE, MICH. — Wolverine Building Group will redevelop the Holy Family Orphanage in Marquette, in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, into an affordable housing property. Wolverine has partnered with Home Renewal Systems Communities and Community Action Alger Marquette for the $16 million project. The orphanage, originally constructed in 1915 and vacant since 1965, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The six-story building featured classrooms, bedrooms, playrooms, a laundry room, kitchen and dining hall. It once housed up to 200 children. Upon renovation, 14 of the 56 units will be set aside as supportive housing units for formerly homeless persons and families in need. Rent for these tenants will be limited to 30 percent of their current incomes. Many of the structure’s historic features, including its sandstone multi-story front porch, will be preserved during the renovation. The original chapel has been restored for use as a community space.
TROY, MICH. — L. Mason Capitani CORFAC International has negotiated five new office leases totaling 21,000 square feet at Wilshire Plaza, located at 901 Wilshire Drive in Troy. The new tenants include NB Coatings, Caliber Home Loans, Keller Williams, Dearborn Holding Co. and Avera Health. Mason L. Capitani negotiated the lease transactions on behalf of the landlord, Summit Wilshire LLC.
Cleveland’s central business district (CBD) continues to make headlines as events like the Republican National Convention, the 2016 and 2017 NBA Championships and the 2016 World Series earned national attention. Within the office market, trends such as “flight to quality” and office-to-residential conversions, which are driven by a hot apartment market, have reduced surplus supply and lowered vacancies. This has shaped metrics positively, and has put Cleveland in a position of strength for the upcoming years. The news of the year has been the purchase of Key Tower by Millennia Cos., a local real estate developer known mostly for multifamily. The company moved its headquarters from a property in Valley View to two entire floors spanning approximately 40,000 square feet in Cleveland’s signature office tower. Almost immediately after, Forest City announced its headquarters move from the historic Terminal Tower to the Key Tower, backfilling almost 150,000 square feet of space that KeyCorp gave back in a downsizing strategy. By the first quarter of 2018, Key Tower will benefit from lobby and building amenity upgrades, and should see a vacancy rate of less than 10 percent. Another story on the horizon is the potential move of Medical Mutual of Ohio, now …