CHICAGO — JLL Capital Markets has arranged the sale of a new 3,000-square-foot retail property occupied by 7-Eleven in Chicago for $5.9 million. Located at 3159 N. Clybourn Ave., the property opened in July. Alex Sharrin, Alex Geanakos and Truman Tiernan of JLL represented the seller, GW Property Group. The buyer was undisclosed. With more than 68,000 stores across 23 countries, 7-Eleven is the world’s largest store chain in the convenience retailing industry, according to JLL.
ROMULUS, MICH. — The Kroger Co. and grocery e-commerce technology company Ocado have selected Romulus as the latest location for a customer fulfillment center. The automated warehouse facility, equipped with digital and robotic capabilities, will serve customers across the Great Lakes region. Kroger will invest $95 million and create 250 new jobs in Romulus, according to Warren Evans, Wayne County chief executive. The 135,000-square-foot facility will be located at 15675 Wahrman Road. It is expected to become operational 18 months after construction begins.
CHICAGO — ShipBob, an e-commerce fulfillment company based in Chicago, has raised $68 million in Series D funding led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, which has previously invested in companies such as Uber, Slack, Opendoor and Doordash. ShipBob says it has experienced a “tremendous acceleration” in new customers since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The new capital will enhance the company’s capabilities to provide for more customers, hire more workers and expand its software platform. To support the influx in demand, ShipBob has opened six new fulfillment centers since April, including two international locations. The company has also hired hundreds of new fulfillment associates over the last few months and plans to hire hundreds more leading up to the holiday season. ShipBob expects to open two more U.S. centers this year and 10 facilities across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia in 2021. Dhruv Saxena and Divey Gulati formed ShipBob in May 2014. Series D funding refers to the fourth stage in the financing cycle of new business growth.
LANSING, MICH. — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed an executive order to reopen movie theaters and performance venues starting Friday, Oct. 9 following closures from the coronavirus pandemic. The order includes arcades, bingo halls, bowling alleys, indoor climbing facilities and trampoline parks. Indoor gatherings are now limited to 20 people per 1,000 square feet or 20 percent of fixed seating capacity, with a maximum of 500 people in Michigan’s largest venues. Outdoor gatherings are limited to 30 people per 1,000 square feet or 30 percent of fixed seating capacity, with a maximum of 1,000 people. Face coverings are now required for students in grades kindergarten and up in classrooms.
CHICAGO — Irvine Co. has negotiated several new and expanded office leases totaling more than 144,000 square feet at 300 North LaSalle, One North Wacker and 71 South Wacker. Vestian, a workplace solutions firm, doubled its footprint to 7,102 square feet at the 60-story 300 North LaSalle. LoanCore Capital, a privately held asset management firm, signed a lease for 4,521 square feet. In-telligent, a Chicago-based technology company, leased 7,753 square feet at the 51-story One North Wacker. Other lease signings at the office tower include Chicago Partners Wealth Advisors, Hana2.0 Property Group, James Denney and Periscope Equity. Chicago-based startup Drift Net Securities leased 10,136 square feet at the 48-story 71 South Wacker. Reply leased 4,885 square feet and Consolidated Training renewed its lease for 14,222 square feet. Irvine Co. partnered with UCI Health to review and enhance its coronavirus-related health and safety plans.
O’FALLON, ILL. — Knoebel Construction has completed building a new Drake’s restaurant in O’Fallon near St. Louis. The 6,014-square-foot restaurant and entertainment venue features two full-service bars and an outdoor patio. Drake’s, an entity of parent company Bluegrass Hospitality Group, is a Kentucky-based chain with 15 locations across the Midwest and Southeast. The restaurant offers more than 20 craft beers on tap as well as sandwiches, salads, burgers and sushi. Drake’s says it is closely following government guidelines for reopening during COVID-19 and working alongside state and local officials to ensure health and safety.
Healthcare has very different drivers when it comes to growth and demand. While highs and lows in the economy influence healthcare in many of the same ways other industries experience, it’s also governed by trends that are unique to how people seek — and pay for — their medical treatments. Chris Jacobson and Susan Wilson, both vice presidents and healthcare advisors for Lee & Associates Commercial Real Estate Services, took some time recently to talk to REBusinessOnline about today’s healthcare real estate trends. Taking a broad look across the sector, some healthcare systems have lost revenue due to suspending elective procedures during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. “It’s going to take them a while to recoup that revenue,” Wilson says. “Additionally, now that they have reopened, they are spacing people out in waiting rooms, so they’re seeing fewer patients. There are currently opportunities for subleases with some major health systems. This could be an opportunity for some of the larger, more successful health systems to take over some of that space.” Jacobson has observed that there are three types of investments occurring right now. The first of those are large healthcare systems presently focused on COVID-19-related care. The …
FARMINGTON HILLS, MICH. — City Club Apartments (CCA) has formed a new partnership with Berkeley Capital, a boutique private equity firm based in Cleveland, to enhance its development of multifamily communities. CCA cites Berkeley’s access to niche sources of international capital and says the partnership creates “great efficiency” in real estate investment, development and acquisition, according to a news release. Farmington Hills-based CCA is an owner, developer and manager with a portfolio of approximately 10,000 apartment units, $2 billion in real estate assets and $750 million under development. Jonathan Holtzman, formerly of Village Green, leads the company. Berkeley is dedicated to creating new investment opportunities for international sources of capital.
CHICAGO — The historic Palmer House Hilton hotel in Chicago faces a bank foreclosure, according to several media reports including The Wall Street Journal. Wells Fargo Bank filed a lawsuit against Thor Equities because the owner was in default on its $333.2 million first mortgage. Located at 17 E. Monroe St., the hotel was originally constructed in 1871. Conrad Hilton later purchased it in 1945. Palmer House features 1,639 guest rooms and suites. Famous guests throughout the decades have included Oscar Wilde, Frank Sinatra, Louis Armstrong and Bill Clinton.
CHICAGO — J.C. Anderson has completed a 22,000-square-foot, full-floor office buildout for global infrastructure and engineering firm Gannett Fleming in Chicago. The firm has relocated from One Prudential Plaza to the 37th floor of Two Prudential Plaza. The new space features open office areas, private offices, meeting rooms and a large training room. Eastlake Studio provided architectural services and Gola Corporate Real Estate Inc. provided project management services.