ROCKFORD, MICH. — Footwear company Wolverine Worldwide Inc. has unveiled a major renovation of its global headquarters in Rockford within western Michigan. The centerpiece of the project is a renovation of 40,000 square feet of space to house the company’s two biggest brands, Merrell and Saucony, the latter of which Wolverine recently relocated to Rockford from Boston. Originally constructed in 1963, the space served as a footwear factory for several decades before being transitioned into office space in the 1990s. Now known as The Factory, the space features exposed structures and concrete floors, floor-to-ceiling windows, 224 individual workstations, dedicated product and marketing rooms for each brand, 31 collaboration and meeting rooms, a café and technology for product design, marketing and collaboration. The project is supported by a $1 million Michigan Business Development Program grant in collaboration with the Michigan Economic Development Center and The Right Place Inc. In all, Wolverine’s headquarters totals 300,000 square feet. Amenities include subsidized daycare and an early education center for children, fitness center, four miles of on-campus hiking and nature trails, an onsite, subsidized cafeteria and dog daycare.
Office
NEWPORT BEACH, CALIF. — CBRE has negotiated the sale of an office property located at 1303 Avocado Ave. in Newport Beach. A local family office acquired the asset from a local private partnership for $11.5 million. Built in 1973, the two-story, 15,200-square-foot property was 96 percent occupied at the time of sale. Anthony DeLorenzo, Sammy Cemo, Bryan Johnson and Harry Su of CBRE represented the seller in the deal.
COSTA MESA, CALIF. — PSRS has arranged a $5.5 million loan for the refinancing of Ocean Business Park, a flex industrial business park in Costa Mesa. At the time of financing, the property was 100 percent occupied by a diverse tenant mix. Michael Tanner and George Gianoukakis of PSRS secured the financing through one of PSRS’ correspondent life insurance company lenders. The transaction provided the undisclosed borrower with a nonrecourse loan featuring a 10-year term and 30-year amortization.
CHICAGO — Glenstar has executed three office leases totaling 100,000 square feet at Presidents Plaza, a two-tower, 831,442-square-foot office complex situated near the Chicago O’Hare International Airport. A joint venture between Glenstar and a private investor purchased the property in October 2024. FM, a global commercial property insurance and loss prevention company, will relocate its regional office from Park Ridge, Ill., to a 40,000-square-foot space at Presidents Plaza. Formerly known as FM Global, the company has a network of offices in the U.S. and internationally. Glenstar also executed a 40,000-square-foot lease with Do It Best, a Fort Wayne, Ind.-based home improvement retailer that acquired True Value last year. In the third lease, current tenant Meitheal Pharmaceuticals signed a 20,000-square-foot expansion that doubles its footprint to 40,000 square feet. Presidents Plaza ownership is investing $16 million in improvements across the two buildings. A golf simulator is slated to open this summer. Spec suites are also being constructed. These improvements add to the property’s $34 million in renovations completed in 2022 that included the redevelopment of a three-story atrium lobby, three-level health club, fully renovated lounge, café with seating and conference center.
DALLAS — Texas-based investment firm SkyWalker Property Partners has purchased The Crossings, a 232,541-square-foot office building in North Dallas. The 10-story building was constructed in 1986 on a 2.6-acre site along the Lyndon B. Johnson Freeway and was renovated in 2018. Todd Savage of Cushman & Wakefield, along with Ben Esterer and Keenan Ryan of JLL, represented the seller, Goddard Investment Group, in the transaction. Jack Mock and Chris Aguilar represented SkyWalker, which plans to upgrade select areas, on an internal basis.
AUSTIN, TEXAS — Houston-based Lionstone Investments has sold University Park, a 206,657-square-foot office building located just north of downtown Austin, for $26 million. The building was constructed in 2008 and was approximately 20 percent leased at the time of sale. Ryan Stevens and Drew Fuller of JLL represented Lionstone in the transaction. The City of Austin purchased the building and plans to occupy the space as well.
NEW YORK CITY — New York University (NYU) has signed a long-term lease for more than 1 million square feet at 770 Broadway in Lower Manhattan. The 1.1 million-square-foot building is adjacent to the university’s campus and is currently home to a number of tenants that occupy about half the space, and NYU plans to assume the existing leases of these users. Grocer Wegman’s will remain a tenant within the building’s retail space. The first stage of NYU’s programming for 770 Broadway will involve the conversion of vacant floors to science and technology uses, including laboratories, classrooms and workstations, as a means of consolidating faculty and research initiatives under a single collaboration hub. Law firm Fried Frank advised NYU on the transaction, which the academic institution estimates will reduce rental expenses by more than $800 million over the first 30 years.
NEW YORK CITY — JLL has negotiated a 20,000-square-foot office lease at 10 Grand Central, a 35-story building in Midtown Manhattan that was originally constructed in the early 1930s. The lease term is 10 years, and the tenant, business advisory firm Riveron, will relocate from 461 Fifth Avenue. Mitchell Konsker, Carlee Palmer, Thomas Swartz and Nicole Danyi of JLL represented the landlord, Marx Realty, in the lease negotiations. Peter Trivelas of Cushman & Wakefield represented Riveron.
CHICAGO — BGO has completed an $8 million amenity center within its office tower at 200 W. Madison in Chicago in collaboration with architecture firm Gensler. The owner credits the amenity center with contributing to a surge in leasing activity at the building. Over the past 16 months, CBRE’s Jason Houze, Michael Kazmierczak and Aaron Schuster have arranged 189,000 square feet of new leases and renewals at the property. New lease signings include Wallace Miller, Sanchez Daniels & Hoffman, NOVO Advisors, Aerotek, Beyond Risk and Houlihan Capital. Renewals and expansions include The Hartford Insurance, UB Greensfelder LLP, PJT Partners, Pinnacle Actuarial Resources Inc., Dehay & Elliston, Crystal Equation Corp. and Savant Capital. The full-floor amenity center includes a fireplace lounge, coworking areas, a fitness center, conferencing center, large boardrooms and a game room with a golf simulator, pool table and shuffleboard. The space is professionally managed and operated by The Experience Group. JLL manages the property. Over the past year, BGO also delivered two move-in ready office suites in the building. Leases were executed within the first month of delivery for both suites. Approximately 133,000 square feet of space is available for lease in the building, with spaces ranging from …
SANTA CLARA, CALIF. — Zscaler has signed a sublease for 301,163 square feet of office space at 4301 and 4401 Great America Parkway in Santa Clara. The company, which provides Zero Trust cybersecurity, will use the facility as its new Silicon Valley global headquarters that is set to open in summer 2026. Mike Saign and Rich Hoyt of Newmark represented Zscaler in the lease negotiations.