LITTLE CANADA, MINN. — Colliers Mortgage has provided a $26.7 million Fannie Mae loan for the refinancing of Montreal Courts Apartments in Little Canada, a northern suburb of St. Paul. The 444-unit multifamily property features a pool, fitness center, community room, playground and laundry facilities. Tony Carlson and Ben Fazendin of Colliers Mortgage originated the 10-year loan on behalf of the undisclosed borrower.
NORTH AURORA, ILL. — Nova Medical Products has signed a 91,956-square-foot industrial lease at 410 Smoke Tree Plaza in North Aurora, about 40 miles west of Chicago. The facility is located within the Park 88 Logistics Center and is slated for completion in the second quarter of 2024. Relocating from McCook, Nova will occupy 55 percent of the 165,928-square-foot building. Kenneth Franzese and John Cassidy of Lee & Associates represented the tenant, which is a manufacturer and distributor of medical equipment products such as cranes, crutches, transport chairs and knee scooters. John Whitehead and Jack Brennan of NAI Hiffman represented the landlord, TradeLane Properties.
MOUNT PROSPECT, ILL. — Principle Construction has completed an 80,053-square-foot speculative warehouse on behalf of developer Seefried Industrial Properties in Mount Prospect, a northwest suburb of Chicago. Located at 2240 S. Busse Road, the property features a clear height of 32 feet, 16 exterior docks, two drive-in doors, 17 trailer stalls and parking for 89 cars. Harris Architects provided architectural services and Kimley-Horn served as civil engineer. Principle also completed a 34,011-square-foot build-out for an undisclosed tenant.
By David Pudlosky and Patrick Savoie, JLL Milwaukee remains a strong office market with leasing activity showing no sign of slowing. Post-pandemic, companies took a fresh look at their workplace strategies to adjust to hybrid working environments, and many rightsized their overall square footage while adding significant amenities and attractions that provide a rewarding office experience for returning workers. Despite a smaller footprint, tenants are seeking updated, highly amenitized spaces in Class A buildings. While amenities have always been a focus for landlords, the buildings that stand out today are the ones that focus on quality amenities over quantity. For example, today’s tenant will likely not be as interested in a building lounge unless it has comfortable seating, a café, strong Wi-Fi and more. To be relevant to tenants, amenities must be high end and culture focused. We’ve seen companies like Milwaukee Tool, Fiserv, Komatsu Mining Corp. and Northwestern Mutual invest in their downtown office spaces and make commitments to bring more employees downtown, and we expect this trend to continue. Building owners can learn from what Class A building landlords are doing to drive leasing activity, and learn how investing in quality, amenity-driven spaces will likely bring in new …
CHICAGO — A joint venture between Fulton Street Cos. and SNK Capital has broken ground on 919 W Fulton Street, a high-rise office development in Chicago’s Fulton Market neighborhood. The development, which will span 409,000 square feet at 919 W. Fulton St., is Chicago’s first major new office development to commence construction in over a year, according to the joint venture. The 11-story building will feature floor-to-ceiling windows; outdoor terraces on all sides; a rooftop lounge and bar; several co-working and conference spaces; and a fitness center. Chicago-based real estate investor Harrison Street Real Estate Capital has signed on to occupy 170,000 square feet at the property, which will also feature a ground-floor restaurant by the locally based Gibsons Restaurant Group. The development will also include a 65-stall parking deck on the building’s lower level, which will be connected to an existing lower-level parking structure at 210 N. Peoria St. The project is scheduled for completion in 2025 and will pursue WELL and LEED Silver certifications. Bank of the Ozarks and Manulife provided financial backing for the property. The development team includes JDL Development, Skender, FitzGerald Associates Architects, Morris Adjimi Architects, Thornton Tomasetti, Eriksson, Syska Hennessy Group and site design group …
Following the financial markets crash 15 years ago, banks and other lenders began working with commercial real estate (CRE) borrowers who had run into trouble. Solutions included loan extensions, loan sales, recapitalizations and foreclosures. Today lenders are pulling out the playbook again. “We have seen a huge number of loan workout deals come across our desk,” says Jeff Salladin, a managing director with Dallas-based private debt fund Revere Capital. “Any lender that holds loans on their books is seeing the same thing.” Back in 2008, dodgy and highly leveraged residential and CRE loans — along with the emergence of exceedingly risky debt derivatives created by Wall Street — eventually crashed, causing the credit market to collapse. Today credit is still available, but the cost of it has spiked over the last 18 months. Consequently, many commercial properties owners have seen values plummet, making it difficult to find refinancing. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.’s (FDIC) imminent auction of Signature Bank’s $33 billion in commercial property loans and other assets is expected to attract bids as much as 40 percent below face value, according to The Wall Street Journal. That’s just the latest gloomy bellwether regarding CRE values and underscores the predicament …
AUSTIN, TEXAS — Hunt Capital Partners has provided $16.5 million in federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) equity for the development of Cady Lofts, a 100-unit affordable housing project in Austin. Cady Lofts will house studio apartments for renters earning 30 to 60 percent of the area median income and who are experiencing homelessness or physical/developmental disabilities. Units will feature modern appliances and eco-friendly utility systems, and residents will have access to a communal computer lab, health and wellness center, case management offices and central laundry facilities. The borrower is a partnership between developer SGI Ventures and the Housing Authority of the City of Austin. Three Bar Architects Inc. is designing the project, with Skybeck Construction serving as the primary contractor. Completion is slated for March 2025.
FULSHEAR, TEXAS —SurePoint Development, a self-storage owner-operator based in San Antonio, has agreed to purchase an 651-unit facility that is under construction in Fulshear, a western suburb of Houston. The site is located near the intersection of Texas Heritage Parkway and FM 1093, and the single-story facility will span 83,000 net rentable square feet of predominantly climate-controlled space. Completion is slated for next spring. The seller was not disclosed.
SAGINAW, TEXAS — Dallas-based developer Journey Capital has broken ground on the third phase of development at Edition of Saginaw Senior Living, located just north of Fort Worth. The project will add 36 independent living cottages to the property. Journey Capital unveiled Phase I of the Edition of Saginaw Senior Living community in January 2022, featuring 22 independent living cottages. Phase II, which is currently under construction, will add a 71-bed assisted living and memory care facility by the end of this year.
DEER PARK, TEXAS — Lee & Associates has negotiated a 21,000-square-foot, full-building industrial lease in Deer Park, an eastern suburb of Houston. The building at 2751 Aaron St. sits on 10.3 acres and features 5,700 square feet of office space. Josh Carl and Trey Erwin led the transaction for Lee & Associates. The names of the tenant and landlord were not disclosed.
