NEW YORK CITY — Criterion Real Estate Capital has provided a $125 million loan for the refinancing of 817 Broadway, a 140,000-square-foot office building in Manhattan’s Union Square neighborhood. The property was originally built in 1895 and features a 4,000-square-foot rooftop terrace. The borrower, Taconic Partners, which acquired the asset in 2016 in partnership with Nuveen Real Estate, will use a portion of the proceeds to fund tenant improvements and leasing costs.
PRINCETON, N.J. — New York-based private investment firm The Birch Group has acquired 600 and 700 Alexander Park, a 213,110-square-foot office portfolio in Princeton, for $47.3 million. The three-story building at 600 Alexander Drive consists of 141,176 square feet, and the three-story building at 700 Alexander Drive totals 71,934 square feet. Amenities include a cafeteria with indoor and outdoor seating, a fitness center, tenant lounge and walking paths. Kevin O’Hearn and Jose Cruz of JLL represented the seller, BentallGreenOak, in the transaction, and procured The Birch Group as the buyer. Greg Nalbandian, also with JLL, arranged acquisition financing.
GRANITE CITY, ILL. — Contegra Construction Co. has completed the new 40,800-square-foot headquarters for icon Mechanical in Granite City, just north of St. Louis. icon Mechanical is a full-service mechanical contractor, engineering and construction firm specializing in the design, fabrication and installation of process piping, power piping, industrial ventilation and commercial HVAC. The company employs more than 150 people in addition to hundreds of trade workers on projects. The two-story property is located at 1616 Cleveland Blvd. and features an atrium, glass-walled offices, LED lighting, two stairways and open interior workspaces. Joining icon and Contegra on the project team were civil engineer Juneau Associates, architect Gray Design Group and structural engineer Alper Audi, all of which are St. Louis-area firms.
By Brendan Carroll, director of research, Cushman & Wakefield The rapid emergence of greater Boston in the first two decades of the 21st century as a global center of advanced, technology-assisted biology has been followed by an even faster rate of growth since the start of the new decade. We have reached a critical mass in the greater Boston market, where we have developed a combination of skills, institutions and collaboration between companies that is supported and financed by an investor base that is qualified to evaluate the potential efficacy of new innovations. This landscape has created a self-propagating ecosystem for development and absorption of life sciences properties. The region’s large inventory of lab space has also evolved as a driver of new users into the market as biotechnology groups increasingly focus on speed to market for promising scientific breakthroughs. In response to these drivers, the inventory of biotechnology-focused laboratory space in greater Boston, which eclipsed 20 million square feet in 2016, is now on pace to reach 30.7 million square feet by 2023. Furthermore, the current inventory levels will likely approach and surpass 40 million square feet this decade, as a sizable set of projects are expected to move …
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Office Properties Income Trust has broken ground on a redevelopment of a Class B office building located at 20 Massachusetts Ave. NW in Washington, D.C. The project will expand and reimagine the seven-story, 340,119-square-foot building to a 10-story, 427,000-square-foot property. The project, named 20 Mass, is expected to be completed in early 2023 and is predicted to cost approximately $200 million. Designed by Leo A. Daily Architects, 20 Mass will include 184,000 square feet of Class A office space on the top four floors with 45,000-square-foot floor plates, 14,000 square feet of retail space, a 271-room Royal Sonesta Hotel and a fitness club. Property amenities will include a vegetated green roof and a conference center. 20 Mass will feature touchless systems and will have WELL and LEED certifications. Located in D.C.’s Capitol Hill neighborhood, 20 Mass is adjacent to Union Station, a regional transit hub, and Capital One Arena, home stadium of the Washington Wizards basketball club and Washington Capitals ice hockey team. The property is also close to neighborhoods such as Chinatown, Penn Quarter and the Mount Vernon Triangle. Office Properties Income Trust is a REIT managed by the operating subsidiary of The RMR Group Inc., …
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — CP Group has purchased Harris Corners, a 370,000-square-foot office campus located at 9115 Harris Corners Parkway in Charlotte. CP Group and Siguler Guff, a private equity investment firm based in New York, purchased the property in a joint venture. The sales price and seller were not disclosed. Built between 2000 and 2006, Harris Corners includes two five-story buildings and one four-story building. Property amenities include a conference facility, tenant lounge with a café, fitness center, food truck program and a central courtyard. The property is also home to a newly constructed Courtyard/Residence Inn. Harris Corners is located 14.7 miles north of the Charlotte Douglas International Airport. Following the acquisition, CP Group will renovate the common areas and amenities while implementing its Class A management and tenant service programs. Formerly known as Crocker Partners, CP Group is a Boca Raton, Fla.-based owner-operator and developer of commercial real estate.
BALTIMORE — Trout Daniel & Associates (TD&A) has arranged the sale of 300 West Fayette Street, a 120,000-square-foot building in Baltimore. The buyer, an entity doing business as 300 W. Fayette Finance LLC, is led by a local investment group. The company plans to redevelop the property into an apartment community. The sales price and seller were not disclosed. The property is a seven story building that formerly was a department store. The building will be converted into 107 market-rate apartments and will include street-level retail and flexible office space. Construction is slated to start in a few months. Built in 1908, the building was the original home of Berkheimer Brothers Department Store. In addition to the original department store, the sale includes an adjoining brownstone building that once housed Robert L. Richardson Mortgage Co. Gary Olschansky of TD&A represented the undisclosed seller, who had owned the building since 2005. Brad Byrnes of Byrnes & Associates Inc. represented the buyer. TD&A is a Baltimore-based commercial real estate services company.
BUFFALO GROVE, ILL. — Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria, famous for its Chicago deep-dish pizza, will consolidate several local properties and open a 125,000-square-foot headquarters in Buffalo Grove, a northern suburb of Chicago. The company will occupy space at 900-950 Busch Parkway in Lake County’s Corporate Grove Business Park. The property will serve as the company’s home office, e-commerce site, manufacturing plant and fulfillment center. Owned by The Missner Group, the building features 15,000 square feet of office space, eight docks and a clear height of 16 feet. Lou Malnati’s plans to occupy the space in spring 2022 following an extensive buildout. Ned Frank and Pat Hake of Colliers Chicago represented The Malnati Organization in the lease transaction. Brett Kroner of Cushman & Wakefield represented ownership.
DRAPER, UTAH — Bellevue, Wash.-based Sterling Realty Organization has purchased Vista Station, a Class A office portfolio in Draper. A joint venture between The Boyer Co. and Gardner Co. sold the asset for an undisclosed price. Located within Vista Station Office Park, the portfolio consists of four buildings totaling 541,678 square feet. Constructed from 2016 to 2018, the buildings feature solar panels and immediate access to FrontRunner at Draper Station. Kip Paul of Cushman & Wakefield and Eli Mills of CBRE represented the seller, while the buyer was self-represented in the transaction.
CUPERTINO, CALIF. — Madison Marquette has completed the disposition of De Anza Plaza, a single-tenant office property located in Cupertino. Cantor Fitzgerald Income Trust acquired the asset for $64 million. Apple has occupied the two-building campus since 2016. Andy Zighelboim, Robert Gilley, Brad Idelman, Kevin Moul and Andrew Gibson of Colliers represented the seller in the deal.
