CHICAGO — SVN Chicago Commercial has brokered the sale of Baric Commons in Chicago’s West Pullman neighborhood for $10.6 million. The 141-unit multifamily community is located at 232 E. 121st Place. Jeff Baasch and Finley Askin of SVN brokered the transaction. An out-of-state private investment group purchased the asset from an undisclosed seller.
By Steve Nowak, Siegel Jennings Co. A recent decision from an Ohio appeals court highlights a developing and troubling pattern in the state’s property tax valuation appeals. In a number of cases, an appraiser’s misuse of the highest and best use concept has led to extreme overvaluations. Given its potential to grossly inflate tax liabilities, property owners and well-known tenants need to be aware of this alarming trend and how to best respond. In the recently decided case, a property used as a McDonald’s restaurant in Northeast Ohio received widely varied appraisals. The county assessor, in the ordinary course of setting values, assessed the value at $1.3 million. Then a Member of the Appraisal Institute (MAI) appraiser hired by the property owner calculated a value of $715,000. Another MAI appraiser, this one hired by the county assessor, set the value at $1.9 million. The average of the two MAI appraisals equals $1.3 million, closely mirroring the county’s initial value. Despite the property owner having met its burden of proof at the first hearing level, the county board of revision rejected the property owner’s evidence without analysis or explanation. The owner then appealed to the Ohio Board of Tax Appeals (BTA). …
COLUMBUS, OHIO — CRG is developing the Cubes at Rickenbacker, a 320,000-square-foot speculative distribution warehouse in Columbus, on behalf of an affiliate of Lexington Realty Trust. Contegra Construction Co. is the general contractor. Completion is slated for the fourth quarter of this year. Situated in the Rickenbacker submarket of Columbus, the project is four miles from the Rickenbacker International Airport. The development will feature a clear height of 36 feet, 32 dock doors, two drive-in doors, a trailer lot and parking for 132 cars. Jeff Lyons and Joseph Kimener of CBRE will serve as leasing agents.
O’FALLON, ILL. — GBT Realty Corp. will develop Shoppes at Richland Creek, a 53,000-square-foot retail center in O’Fallon, an eastern suburb of St. Louis. In March, GBT purchased the 17-acre site from Vantage Credit Union for an undisclosed price. Shoppes at Richland Creek is approximately 70 percent pre-leased to tenants such as Smoothie King, Chicken Salad Chick, Pacific Dental, Five Guys Burgers + Fries, Taco Bell, Burger King, Popeyes and Tidal Wave Luxury Car Wash. Completion is slated for summer 2021. “The area’s growing population and solid workforce, combined with the city’s willingness to assist us in the development process, made this site — and this community — the ideal place for GBT’s next shopping center,” says Jeff Pape, managing director with GBT. O’Fallon has experienced significant growth over the past two decades with nearly 2,000 new homes and over $400 million in residential and commercial development, according to GBT. Tennessee-based GBT currently has more than $1 billion of commercial development totaling 5 million square feet in the pipeline or under construction.
NORTHBROOK, ILL. — Cannabis Facility Construction (CFC) has broken ground on a new recreational and medical cannabis dispensary for Greenhouse in Northbrook. Located at 755 Skokie Blvd., the nearly 10,000-square-foot dispensary will serve as a flagship location for the brand. The design ensures all points of sale are six feet apart in order to accommodate social distancing. In addition to the retail space up front, there will be back office space and a vault for inventory storage. A timeline for completion was not disclosed. Greenhouse currently operates four dispensaries in Illinois. CFC, a division of Mosaic Construction, is a cannabis design-build firm based in Northbrook.
LIVONIA, MICH. — Cushman & Wakefield has brokered the sales of two industrial buildings totaling nearly 250,000 square feet in Livonia, a western suburb of Detroit. Sales prices were undisclosed. In the first transaction, Anthony Avendt of Cushman & Wakefield represented Country Fresh in the sale of 31770 Enterprise Drive to Caresoft Global LLC. The 148,000-square-foot property, partially renovated in 2004, will be upgraded to meet the needs of the global technology and solutions company. In the second transaction, Avendt and colleague Evan Miller represented Livonia East Corporate Center in the disposition of 12622-645 Inkster Road, a 101,089-square-foot building. MobilityTRANS acquired the asset for its assembly and manufacturing operations. The property underwent renovations beginning last year.
HUNTINGTON, IND. — Indiana Physical Therapy Inc. has signed a retail lease for 4,200 square feet at the Huntington Forum Shops in Huntington, about 25 miles southwest of Fort Wayne. The shopping center is located at 2880 Walmart Drive. Stanley Phillips and Dave Horacek of Bradley Co. represented the landlord, SHIV Huntington LLC, in the lease negotiations. Indiana Physical Therapy now operates 19 locations across the state.
COLUMBUS, OHIO — Industry Columbus, a 236-unit luxury apartment complex in downtown Columbus, is set to open later this month. Charles Street Development Corp. is the developer. The project is the first and only community in downtown Columbus to feature a rooftop swimming pool and hot tub, onsite dog park and full floor of coworking space. Located at 230 E. Long St., the community features studios, one- and two-bedroom units, as well as private townhomes. Additional amenities include a pet washing station, sports bar and lounge, private event space, outdoor courtyard and fitness center. Monthly rents start at $1,095. Residents can currently earn $3,000 toward rent by moving in before Aug. 15. Village Green is the property manager. Denver-based Charles Street maintains a regional office in Ohio.
INDIANAPOLIS — KeyBank Community Development Lending and Investment has secured $27.7 million of construction financing, $13.2 million of tax credit equity and $18.4 million of Freddie Mac permanent financing for the development of a 210-unit affordable seniors housing property in Indianapolis. Herman & Kittle Properties was the borrower. Known as The Reserve at White River, the project will include two four-story buildings, 14 cottage-style, single-story buildings and a 5,000-square-foot clubhouse. The project will use income averaging so that 150 units will be set aside for tenants earning 60 percent of the area median income (AMI), 51 units will be set aside for those earning 50 percent AMI and nine units will be reserved for those making 70 percent of AMI. All of the units will be restricted to residents age 55 and older, with 21 of the units accessible for those with special needs. Kyle Kolesar, Victoria O’Brien and Robbie Lynn of KeyBank structured the financing.
CHICAGO — McDonald’s says that U.S. same-store sales have sequentially improved from late March through May. For the month of May, the Chicago-based fast food giant reported a decline in U.S. same-store sales of 5.1 percent, compared with 19.2 percent for the month of April. Globally, sales fell 29.8 percent quarter-to-date through May. McDonald’s says that 95 percent of its restaurants globally are now open. In the United States, more than 1,000 restaurant dining rooms have reopened with reduced seating capacity. “Our unique advantages, including a high percentage of drive-thru restaurants and investments in delivery and digital, have enabled us to adapt to the changing landscape presented by the COVID-19 outbreak,” says Chris Kempczinski, president and CEO.
