AUSTIN, TEXAS — Tech firm GLG, which provides platforms that bring subject matter experts together, has expanded its office lease in Austin. The company will now occupy 84,000 square feet at 301 Congress Avenue, with space for up to 730 employees. The new space includes an additional coffee bar, an outdoor covered terrace and a training and presentation room.
NEW YORK CITY — Fisher Brothers has signed Deluxe Financial Services to a 21,229-square-foot lease at 605 Third Ave., a 1.1 million square-foot office tower in Manhattan. The financial services provider will occupy the entire 37th floor of the building. Ryan Tibbits and Harry Krausman of Cushman & Wakefield represented Deluxe Financial Services in the transaction. Since completing a $25 million capital improvement program at 605 Third Ave., Fisher Brothers has executed 280,000 square feet of leases at the tower. Originally built by Fisher Brothers in 1963, the 44-story building is certified LEED Gold by the U.S. Green Building Council with a tenant roster that includes Univision, AECOM, David Hutcher & Citron LLP and the United Nations Population Fund.
SEATTLE — Unico Properties has purchased two office properties located in Seattle’s southern central business district (CBD). According to Puget Sound Business Journal, the acquisition price was $359 million. Comprising the entire 1100 block of Second Avenue and totaling 705,868 square feet, the asset consists of adjoining buildings: 1111 Third and 2nd & Spring. At the time of sale, the buildings were collectively 95 percent leased following a $65 million renovation completed in 2017. Built in 1980 by Wright Runstad, the 33-story, 705,868-square-foot 111 Third includes a 358-stall, six-level, subterranean parking garage, a fitness center, bike storage, showers, locker rooms, an expanded modern lobby, an outdoor plaza, and updated exterior façades and store fronts. The name of the seller was not released.
JACKSONVILLE, FLA. — Transwestern has arranged the $24.5 million sale of BB&T Tower, a 285,497-square-foot office building located at 200 W. Forsyth St. in downtown Jacksonville. John Bell of Transwestern arranged the transaction on behalf of the seller, special servicer LNR Partners. Talara Investment Group LLC acquired the 18-story tower through the Ten-X auction platform. The prior owners invested $3.9 million in property upgrades, including an elevator modernization program. BB&T Tower was 63 percent leased at the time of sale.
OAKLAND, CALIF. — TMG Partners has completed the sale of 1330 Broadway, an office building located in downtown Oakland. KKR, a global investment firm, acquired the property for an undisclosed price. In addition to the sale, TMG is partnering with KKR and will continue with on-site property management and asset management. TMG originally purchased the 18-story, 320,000-square-foot building in November 2015. Tenants at the property include Oracle, Arup, Clovis Oncology, UCSF, Verizon, Chase Bank and Citizens Engagement Lab.
ATLANTA — Thyssenkrupp Elevator, one of the world’s largest elevator companies, has unveiled plans to build a new headquarters complex near The Battery Atlanta in Cobb County. The German company will develop the facility in collaboration with the Braves Development Co. (BDC). BDC is the owner and operator of The Battery, the 1.5 million-square-foot mixed-use development surrounding SunTrust Park, home ballpark of the Atlanta Braves. The Thyssenkrupp headquarters, dubbed The Innovation Complex, will feature three buildings anchored by a 420-foot tall elevator qualification and test tower — the tallest of its kind in the country and one of the tallest in the world, according to Thyssenkrupp. According to the Atlanta Business Chronicle, the Development Authority of Cobb County agreed to issue up to $264 million in bonds for the new building last month. With 18 shafts, the Innovation Complex test tower will be used to evaluate new concepts and product pilots, including high-speed elevators; TWIN, a two-cabins-per-shaft elevator system; and MULTI, the world’s first rope-less and sideways-moving elevator system. In addition, the test tower will conduct tests to ensure compliance with safety requirements on standard elevators. Atlanta is already home to the first TWIN elevator system in North America. The technology is …
DETROIT — Chemical Bank, which has been headquartered in Midland, Michigan, since its founding in 1917, is relocating to downtown Detroit effective immediately. The headquarters will temporarily operate out of the bank’s Detroit office, located at 333 Fort St., while awaiting a new 20-story building to be built at the corner of Woodward Avenue and Elizabeth Street. The move coincides with the city of Detroit’s announcement to name Chemical Bank as the primary banking partner for managing the city’s operating deposit accounts. Chemical Bank plans to add approximately 500 employees to its new Detroit office upon completion of construction. The 240,000-square-foot tower is expected to include street-level retail space, car parking, office floors and condominiums, according to the Detroit Free Press. A timeline for completion was not disclosed. Midland will continue to be home of the company’s corporate operations center. Chemical Financial Corp. is the holding company for Chemical Bank.
INDIANAPOLIS — A joint venture between Integris Ventures and Starlight Equity Partners has acquired 50 South Meridian, a 50,000-square-foot office building in the heart of downtown Indianapolis. The purchase price was not disclosed. The new owners plan to renovate the main elevator lobby, common corridors and signage. Rich Forslund and Matt Langfeldt of Colliers are marketing the property for lease. Originally constructed in 1985, the property was 75 percent occupied at the time of acquisition.
MIAMI — Miami-based CGI Merchant Group LLC has received $40.8 million in loans from Starwood Mortgage Capital LLC to refinance an office building in Coral Gables and three office properties in Palm Beach and Martin counties. According to its website, Starwood provided a $25 million loan for 55 Miracle Mile, a four-story, 65,242-square-foot office building in Coral Gables. The property was built in 2004 and is 96 percent leased to 19 tenants. Starwood also provided a $15.8 million loan to refinance The Nexus Portfolio, a three-building suburban office portfolio totaling 128,563 square feet in Lake Worth, West Palm Beach and Stuart. The portfolio operates as executive suites and is 93 percent leased to 350 tenants. CGI originally acquired the assets in 2013.
DALLAS — Crescent Real Estate LLC has topped out The Luminary, a 104,979-square-foot creative office building in Dallas’ West End neighborhood. A partnership between Crescent and Boston-based Long Wharf Capital acquired the property, which was designed by Dallas-based architecture firm Corgan, in 2017. Following the seven-story expansion, The Luminary is now the tallest building in the West End.
