CHICAGO — Northwind Group has provided a $62.5 million first mortgage, senior secured acquisition and lease-up loan collateralized by 303 East Wacker Drive, a 30-story office building in Chicago. The property totals more than 1 million square feet and includes a 282-space parking garage. Situated on the Chicago River in the East Loop submarket, the building was roughly 75 percent occupied at the time of loan closing. A joint venture between 601W Cos. and David Werner Real Estate Investments was the buyer. The financing facilitated the acquisition from the existing lender via a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure from prior ownership, Beacon Capital Partners. The building has been recently renovated and modernized with over $32 million of upgrades and tenant-focused improvements. A new amenity center on the entire 30th floor overlooks Lake Michigan. John Vavas of Polsinelli Law Firm represented Northwind.
NEW YORK CITY — Financial services firm Citadel has signed a 504,000-square-foot office lease at 660 Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, according to a recent report on the Manhattan office market from real estate services firm Savills. Brookfield Properties owns the 39-story, 1.2 million-square-foot building, which recently underwent a $400 million redevelopment. Law firm Fried Frank acted as advisor to Citadel in the lease negotiations and is also advising the company in the development of its new headquarters at 350 Park Avenue. CBRE is the leasing agent for 660 Fifth Avenue.
NEW HAVEN, CONN. — Institutional Property Advisors (IPA), a division of Marcus & Millichap, has negotiated the sale of 200 Fountain, a 158-unit apartment complex in New Haven. Built in 1963, the property offers studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom units and amenities such as a resident lounge, library, fitness center and a business center. Victor Nolletti, Eric Pentore, Wes Klockner and Ross Friedel of IPA represented the seller and procured the buyer, both of which were limited liability companies, in the transaction.
NEW YORK CITY — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the $6.7 million sale of a 20-unit multifamily building in Manhattan’s West Village. The five-story building at 77 Barrow St. was originally constructed in 1900. Joe Koicim and Peter Dodge of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller and procured the buyer, both of which were private investors that requested anonymity, in the transaction.
ROCHESTER, MICH. — Cushman & Wakefield has brokered the sale of the Henry Ford Health Rochester Hospital medical office building in Rochester, a northern suburb of Detroit. The sales price was undisclosed. The 113,687-square-foot property was built in 1994 and expanded in 2014. The facility is situated on the campus of Henry Ford Health Rochester Hospital, formerly known as Ascension Providence Rochester Hospital. Tenants include Henry Ford Health Providence Rochester, Henry Ford Health Family Practice and Contemporary Obstetrics and Gynecology PC. The hospital is part of the recently established partnership between Ascension Michigan and Henry Ford Health. Gino Lollio, Travis Ives, Sushil Puria, Tyler Morss and Garrett Keais of Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller, Detroit-based KIRCO. The buyer was UDLR Healthcare.
ST. CHARLES AND LAKE ST. LOUIS, MO. — Marcus & Millichap has arranged the $5.2 million sale of two retail properties net leased to O2B Kids in Missouri. The early childhood education facilities are located at 157 Hughes Lane in St. Charles and 1000 Wyngate Ridge Drive in Lake St. Louis. The 5,733-square-foot Hughes Lane property was built in 1997, and the 7,634-square-foot Wyngate Ridge building was constructed in 2006. Both assets operate under new 20-year triple-net leases. Dominic Sulo of Marcus & Millichap procured the undisclosed buyer.
ALGONQUIN, ILL. — Entre Commercial Realty has negotiated the sale of a 13,070-square-foot industrial facility located at 910 W. Algonquin Road in the Chicago suburb of Algonquin. The sales price was undisclosed. The light manufacturing property features one exterior dock, one drive-in door and heavy power throughout. Marc Bartolini and Dan Jones of Entre Commercial Realty represented the seller, while Century 21 New Heritage West represented the buyer.
HOLMDEL, N.J. — Jersey Pickleball Club will open a 13,800-square-foot venue at the Bell Works mixed-use development in Holmdel. The venue, which is scheduled to open in mid-March, will have five courts, social areas and locker rooms. Other tenants that will be opening in 2025 at Bell Works, which is owned by Inspired by Somerset Development, include restaurant Mabel, barbershop Exclusive Cuts and fitness concept ARMR Studios.
By Taylor Williams “The greatest victory is one that doesn’t require a battle.” Ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu penned that line as part of The Art of War, but in applying the expression to the (almost) equally cutthroat business of developing and investing in retail real estate, there is some wisdom to be gleaned. In simple terms, sometimes the best decision, at least temporarily, is to do nothing. Passivity does not come easily to commercial builders and buyers. Where their investors are concerned, these companies often have strict timelines for deployment of funds and even stricter benchmarks for guaranteed returns. When market conditions are favorable, these groups are pressured to maximize growth, in terms of both direct mandates from shareholders and indirect obligations via competitors being aggressive in the market. For better or worse, the market sentiments surrounding real estate development and investment embody classic principles of capitalism, and that’s unlikely to ever change. But if there is one thing developers, investors, lenders and operators across all asset classes can likely agree on, it’s that market conditions in 2024 have not been favorable. Yet the push for growth has merely slowed, not disappeared. New product must get developed to …
AUSTIN, TEXAS — Palladius Capital Management, an Austin-based investment management firm, has purchased a portfolio of nine multifamily and student housing communities. Palladius acquired the portfolio, which comprises five multifamily communities and four student housing properties, for $579 million. The names and locations of the nine properties were not released, but the communities total more than 2,500 apartments and student housing units and are located in high-growth markets and near universities with high application/enrollment growth. The seller was also not disclosed. Palladius acquired the portfolio on behalf of a recently closed, Palladius-sponsored private investment fund that raised approximately $112 million in equity, primarily via private wealth sources. “The successful deployment of this fund speaks to our team’s ability to invest throughout various macroeconomic environments,” says Marko Velazquez, senior managing director of Palladius. Palladius, through its affiliates, manages and operates approximately $950 million of real estate properties across the country. The firm was launched in July 2021 and primarily acquires value-add and core multifamily, student housing and hospitality properties. The company also originates debt investments and acquires whole loans through its privately held REIT, Palladius Income Fund. — John Nelson