GREEN BAY, WIS. — Nicolet Bankshares Inc. has agreed to acquire Commerce Financial Holdings Inc. and its wholly owned subsidiary, Commerce State Bank. The deal is valued at approximately $129.6 million. The combined company is expected to have pro forma assets of $4.3 billion, deposits of $3.6 billion and loans of $3.2 billion. Commerce would represent approximately 16 percent of the combined company’s year-end assets. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter. Nicolet Bankshares is the bank holding company of Nicolet National Bank. Founded in Green Bay in 2000, the bank operates branches in northeast and central Wisconsin as well as the upper peninsula of Michigan. West Bend-based Commerce was the 20th largest bank in the Milwaukee area last year, according to the Milwaukee Business Journal.
Wisconsin
MILWAUKEE — Founders 3 Real Estate Services has brokered the sale of a 98,600-square-foot industrial building in Milwaukee for $5.2 million. The property is located at 11925 W. Carmen Ave. Andy Hess and Derek Yentz of Founders 3 represented the seller, HK Ventures LLC. BIG Acquisitions LLC, a division of Brennan Investment Group, purchased the facility, which is fully leased to Hilmot.
MILWAUKEE — Brennan Investment Group has acquired a 98,600-square-foot industrial facility in Milwaukee. The seller and sales price were undisclosed. The property, located at 11925 W. Carmen Ave., is fully leased to Hilmot, a provider of conveyor equipment. Andy Hess and Derek Yentz of Founders 3 Real Estate Services represented Brennan in the transaction. Chicago-based Brennan has acquired more than $4 billion in industrial real estate since 2010.
MENOMONEE FALLS, SUN PRAIRIE AND NEW BERLIN, WIS. — Associated Bank has provided $8.6 million in three separate loans for the land acquisition and construction of early childhood learning centers in three Wisconsin cities. Bradford Real Estate was the borrower. Each of the standalone, 10,000-square-foot buildings will be fully leased by The Learning Experience, which provides childcare and educational services for children ages six weeks to six years. The centers will be located in Menomonee Falls, Sun Prairie and New Berlin. All three are slated for completion this year. Daniel Barrins of Associated Bank managed the loans and closings.
BRISTOL, WIS. — HSA Commercial Real Estate has completed the acquisition of a 68-acre site in Bristol near I-94 and the Wisconsin-Illinois border. The company has received city approval to develop an industrial business park consisting of three buildings totaling more than 1 million square feet. The first two speculative buildings are slated for completion later this year, including a 157,300-square-foot warehouse and a 471,950-square-foot distribution center. Known as Bristol Highlands Commerce Center, the park will include walking paths, landscaping and a detention pond. Building clear heights will range from 32 to 36 feet. Partners in Design Architects, Pinnacle Engineering and Premier Design + Build make up the project team.
MADISON, WIS. — CG Schmidt, a Milwaukee-based construction management and general contracting firm, has purchased an office building located at 433 W. Washington Ave. in Madison. The building will serve as CG Schmidt’s Madison office, replacing the current office at 10 W. Mifflin St. Keller Real Estate Group sold the five-story, 34,255-square-foot building. CG Schmidt plans to remodel the building and update it for efficiency and sustainability. Kahler Slater Architects designed the modernization. Construction has begun with completion slated for this July. CG Schmidt will occupy three floors, with the two remaining floors available for commercial and retail lease.
OCONOMOWOC, WIS. — Stan Johnson Co. has arranged the $36.4 million sale of a big-box retail property fully leased to Fleet Farm in Oconomowoc, about 30 miles west of Milwaukee. The 218,628-square-foot property is located at 1555 Pabst Farms Circle. Constructed in 2018, the building sits within Pabst Farms, a 1,500-acre mixed-use development. Upon full completion, the project will offer residential, retail, office and healthcare space with 360 acres of parks and green space. Tom Fritz, Brandon Duff and Christina Pecoraro of Stan Johnson represented the seller, a Wisconsin-based developer. Minneapolis-based SR Realty Trust Inc. purchased the asset.
MILWAUKEE — JLL Capital Markets has negotiated the sale of 222 East Erie in Milwaukee’s Third Ward district for $9.6 million. The brokerage also secured $7.6 million in acquisition financing through a Chicago-based financial institution. R2 Cos. was the buyer. Originally built in 1896 as a bakery, the property was repositioned in 2006 as a creative office asset. The four-story building features onsite parking. Jaime Fink, Jeffrey Bramson, Bruce Miller, Patrick Shields and Sam DiFrancesca of JLL represented the private seller. Christopher Carroll and Lucas Borges of JLL led the financing efforts.
PLEASANT PRAIRIE, WIS. — Rust-Oleum has leased 102,000 square feet of industrial space at 10100 Jelly Belly Lane in Pleasant Prairie. The owner, Jelly Belly Candy Co., will continue to occupy the remaining 132,000 square feet within the building. Kevin Barry and David Buckley of The Barry Co. brokered the lease transaction. Rust-Oleum, a manufacturer of protective paints and coatings, will use the space for its warehouse and distribution operations.
OAK CREEK, WIS. — Mid-America Real Estate Corp. has brokered the sale of a 7,882-square-foot retail building on an outlot to Drexel Town Square in Oak Creek, about 12 miles south of Milwaukee. The sales price was undisclosed. The property is fully leased to five tenants, including Associated Bank, Sport Clips, Bentley’s Pet Stuff, Charles Schwab and Tropical Smoothie Café. Carly Gallagher Kelly and Andrew Prater of Mid-America represented the seller, a Wisconsin-based developer. A private investor purchased the asset.