SHILOH, ILL. — BARBERMurphy Group, a commercial real estate and brokerage firm specializing in properties located in southwest Illinois, has acquired Fairview Heights-based Johnson Properties Inc. With the acquisition, the firm is now one of the largest commercial real estate entities in southern Illinois. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The transition will take place immediately, with a total of six commercial brokers relocating to BARBERMurphy’s offices in Shiloh.
MILWAUKEE — Pro-Safety Inc. has signed a 10,000-square-foot industrial lease at 6621 W. Mill Road in Milwaukee. Anthony Huenerbein of The Dickman Co. Inc./CORFAC International represented Pro-Safety Inc., a manufacturer of chainsaw parts for the logging industry, in the transaction. Jim Larkin of Colliers International represented the landlord, 6601 Mill LLC.
CHICAGO — A joint venture between Beacon Investment Properties and an investor account advised by UBS Global Asset Management has acquired 20 North Clark, a 35-story office tower in Chicago, for $63 million. The seller was a joint venture between the Multi-Employer Property Trust (MEPT) and Hamilton Partners of Chicago, which was advised by Bentall Kennedy. Located on the northeast corner of Clark and Madison streets in downtown Chicago’s Central Loop, the 393,094-square-foot, Class B+ building, was 83 percent occupied at the time of sale. Susan Hill, senior managing director at HFF, arranged the acquisition financing, a four-year loan totaling 75 percent of the purchase price. General Electric Capital Corp. provided the loan. Paul Lundstedt and Mike Vesper, vice presidents in CBRE’s investment properties institutional group, represented MEPT and Hamilton Partners. Ron Lakin and Rachel Waymire of CBRE’s brokerage services group will serve as the leasing agents for the property.
VERNON HILLS, ILL. — Chicago-based REVA Development Partners has broken ground on a 304-unit luxury rental community in Vernon Hills, located about 36 miles north of Chicago. The Oaks of Vernon Hills is a 27-acre development that will feature garden-style apartment buildings and rental townhouses in a series of pocket neighborhoods. The apartment homes will include one-bed and two-bed floor plans spanning 696 to 1,212 square feet. The townhomes, measuring 1,487 to 1,800 square feet, will feature two or three bedrooms and an attached two-car garage. Amenities will include a clubhouse, an outdoor swimming pool and walking trails. Kinzie Builders is the general contractor. Leasing is expected to begin in spring with first occupancies in the summer.
DES PLAINES, ILL. — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the $1.7 million sale of 100-180 Touhy Court, an industrial complex in Des Plaines, located about 20 miles northwest of Chicago. Paul Tesdal and Stephen Lieberman, investment specialists in Marcus & Millichap’s Chicago office, marketed the property on behalf of the seller, a private investor. The buyer, a fund manager, was also secured and represented by Paul Tesdal and Stephen Lieberman. The property is comprised of two flex/industrial properties totaling 48,101 square feet, each built in 1989. The buildings were 72 percent occupied at the time of sale.
SOUTHFIELD, MICH. — Colliers International has arranged a 21,886-square-foot office lease at The First Center Southfield Building in Southfield. Brent Beshears of Colliers International represented the tenant, American Axle & Manufacturing (AAM) in this transaction. The First Center Southfield building is located at 26911 Northwestern Highway. AAM is a Detroit-based manufacturer of automobile driveline and drivetrain components and systems.
After years of trailing cities such as Dallas, Memphis and Indianapolis as major bulk distribution centers, Kansas City has emerged as a significant and large hub for the development of Class A industrial logistics centers whose development is backed by institutional money. The trend is transformational for our market and here to stay for three primary reasons: (1) Institutional money — namely life insurance companies — has always allocated a portion of its funds for real estate. That money has found Kansas City. (2) Local Kansas City developers, brokers and property managers are well-suited and eager to accommodate non-operating entities like life insurance companies to buy land, build projects on a speculative basis, lease up and manage the new developments, and sell them when the financial backers decide to cash in on their investments. Kansas City has traditionally been a family-owned real estate development community comprised of five or six major players. None of these families has sold its portfolios to industrial REITs. Thus, there is a niche for institutional-backed, Class A development that is financed with deep pockets and brought to market by local developers. (3) The biggest reason for large-scale Class A industrial development in Kansas City is …
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, ILL . — AT&T Wireless has signed a lease renewal and expansion for 104,508 square feet of office space at 95 W. Algonquin Road in Arlington Heights, a northwest suburb of Chicago. AT&T moved into the building in the mid 1990s and currently occupies 80,000 square feet for its business solutions support group. The 138,000-square-foot property is now fully leased. Jason Wurtz, Linda Garske and Michael Flynn with NAI Hiffman’s office services group represented the building’s owner, CBRE Global Investors, in the transaction. George Kotrogiannis and Kurt Kittner of Jones Lang LaSalle represented AT&T.
ELK GROVE VILLAGE, ILL. — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the $2.3 million sale of a multi-tenant industrial property in Elk Grove Village, located about 23 miles northwest of Chicago. Paul Tesdal, an investment specialist in Marcus & Millichap’s Chicago office, marketed the property on behalf of the seller, a REIT, and represented the buyer, a limited liability company. The single-story, 98,445-square-foot building is located at 1900-1960 Devon Ave. and includes seven units.
WEST DES MOINES, IOWA — Seattle-based Nordstrom Inc. has announced plans to open a 35,000-square-foot Nordstrom Rack store at the Plaza at Jordan Creek in West Des Moines. The store is scheduled to open this fall. Though Nordstrom has operated a 628,560-square-foot fulfillment center in Cedar Rapids since 1997, Nordstrom Rack will be the company’s first retail location in Iowa. Nordstrom Rack is the off-price retail division of Nordstrom Inc., which offers customers apparel, accessories and shoes at discounted prices. The new store will join Dick’s Sporting Goods, Lowe’s Home Improvement and an expanding list of retailers filling out the Plaza at Jordan Creek. Hurd Real Estate Services Inc. and Signature Real Estate Services Inc. are co-developing The Plaza at Jordan Creek.