Sunday, March 29, 2026
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DevelopmentMidwestOhioRestaurantRetail

Center Square Leases 33,000 SF Warehouse in Columbus, Plans Redevelopment

by Kristin Harlow

COLUMBUS, OHIO — Center Square, a company specializing in community events and entertainment centers, has leased a 33,000-square-foot warehouse at 225 Neilston St. in the historic Warehouse District of Columbus. The company plans to transform the building into The Kee, a community center with an indoor-outdoor event venue and a restaurant and bar. The landlord, Hackman Capital Partners, owns the majority of the real estate in the Warehouse District. Clayton Davis and Alex Ashworth of JLL represented both the landlord and the tenant in the lease transaction. Center Square plans to program events at the venue such as concerts, comedy shows, fitness classes, art exhibits and farmer’s markets. There will also be an onsite catering option for private parties, weddings and corporate events. The Kee is expected to open in July 2022.

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IllinoisLeasing ActivityMidwestRestaurantRetail

Tatas Tacos, Hops & Scotch to Open at The Cooper in Chicago

by Kristin Harlow

CHICAGO — Tatas Tacos and Hops & Scotch are the first retail tenants announced for The Cooper, a 29-story luxury apartment tower located at 720 S. Wells St. in Chicago’s Printers Row. Tatas Tacos will open its fourth Chicago restaurant, while Hops & Scotch, a new bottle shop concept from the owners behind South Loop Market, will open its first location. Tatas Tacos, which is slated to open in spring 2022, will occupy 5,643 square feet on the northern end of the tower. Hops & Scotch is scheduled to open later this year. The 1,286-square-foot store will offer a selection of beers, wines and spirits. Delivered in 2018, The Cooper is the first phase of Lendlease’s seven-acre Southbank development.

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DevelopmentIllinoisMidwestRestaurantRetail

McHugh Construction Begins Renovation of Historic Ramova Theater in Chicago

by Kristin Harlow

CHICAGO — McHugh Construction has begun the renovation of the historic Ramova Theater in Chicago’s Bridgeport neighborhood. The scope of the project involves restoring the theater and building out adjacent space for a new brewery and restaurant. Originally constructed in 1929, the theater has been vacant since 1985. Completion is slated for late 2022. The project is a public-private partnership with the City of Chicago and co-developers Our Revival Chicago and Baum Revision. Upon completion, the 22,000-square-foot Ramova Theater will include a 1,600-seat auditorium and a separate balcony-level theater that can accommodate 200 people. The venue will host bands as well as events for local schools and community groups. The project will restore the theater’s existing marquis, lobby, auditorium, plaster ceiling and vintage ticket booth. Adjacent to the theater, a separate entrance will lead patrons to a 4,000-square-foot brewery and tap room fronting Halsted Street. A 200-person space on the second floor will host private events and intimate music performances. The project will also include the revived Ramova Grill restaurant. The 30-seat eatery will be run by The Duck Inn chef and owner Kevin Hickey, a Bridgeport native who used to frequent the Ramova Grill as a child. The original …

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IllinoisLeasing ActivityMidwestRestaurantRetail

Kindling, Foxtrot to Open at Willis Tower’s Catalog in Chicago

by Kristin Harlow

CHICAGO — Chicago’s Fifty/50 Group will debut the first full-service restaurant at Willis Tower in downtown Chicago. Known as Kindling, the char-house restaurant will occupy a two-story space and outdoor terrace as part of Catalog, the five-story dining, retail and entertainment portion of Willis Tower. Kindling is slated to open in 2022. The restaurant will feature a large wood-burning grill and guests will enjoy entrees such as rotisserie chicken, brisket and halibut. Also joining Catalog in spring 2022 is the Chicago-based corner store, café and delivery market Foxtrot. The Catalog location will feature a coffee bar plus a selection of everyday essentials, locally sourced goods and grab-and-go offerings. Users of the Foxtrot app can order items for pickup or delivery. EQ Office owns Willis Tower, which is undergoing a $500 million renovation project. The Fifty/50 Group is a hospitality group that owns and operates 14 restaurants and bars across Chicago.

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AcquisitionsKansasMidwestRestaurantRetail

Quantum Arranges $2.5M Sale of Wendy’s-Occupied Property in Salina, Kansas

by Kristin Harlow

SALINA, KAN. — Quantum Real Estate Advisors Inc. has arranged the $2.5 million sale of a single-tenant retail property net leased to Wendy’s in the central Kansas town of Salina. The 2,967-square-foot building is located at 1940 S. Ohio St. Jason Caplan of Quantum represented the Chicago-based buyer. Matthew Mousavi of SRS Real Estate represented the seller, a real estate investment and operating company based in California.

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2222-Market-St.-Philadelphia
Market ReportsNortheastNortheast Market ReportsPennsylvaniaRestaurantRetail

Downtown Philly Retailers, Restaurants Wait Out Delta Variant

by Taylor Williams

By Taylor Williams Relative to a year ago, life is much better right now for many retailers and restaurants in Philadelphia’s Center City district, but the recent surge of transmission of the Delta variant is keeping a key ingredient of the demand recipe at bay: office users. According to CBRE’s second-quarter report on the Philadelphia office market, the most current data available at the time of this writing, the marketwide vacancy rate was 18.9 percent at the end of that period. Specifically with regard to the downtown area, the largest office submarket by far in terms of inventory, vacancy stood at 14.7 percent at the end of the second quarter. Office metrics aside, as Philadelphia grappled with the novelty of COVID-19 in 2020, its merchants and food purveyors adapted, adjusting inventory levels, rolling out improvised outdoor seating areas and expanding takeout and curbside pick-up options.  The colder months saw the introduction of igloos — enclosed, heated nooks for private dining — as well as larger, city-led efforts to clear major retail corridors for street-side experiences, known locally as “streateries.”  The innovations saved many-a-retailer and restaurant and are likely here to continue through 2021 and beyond. Yet within the city’s most …

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FeaturesRestaurantRetail

Business Conditions Are Worse Now than Three Months Ago, Says National Restaurant Association

by Kristin Harlow

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The majority of full-service and limited-service restaurant operators say that business conditions are worse now than they were three months ago, according to a new survey conducted by the National Restaurant Association. The study found that 44 percent of operators think it will take more than a year before business conditions return to normal, and 19 percent believe they never will. The National Restaurant Association conducted the study from Sept. 7-15 and surveyed 4,000 restaurant operators nationwide. Although the industry has added back many of the jobs lost during the pandemic, 78 percent of operators say their restaurant does not have enough employees to support current customer demand. Rising costs are impacting restaurants too. According to the survey, 91 percent of operators are paying more for their food; 84 percent have higher labor costs; and 63 percent are paying higher occupancy costs. At the same time, profitability is down — 85 percent of operators reported smaller margins than prior to the pandemic. While August is typically one of the busiest months for restaurants, 63 percent of operators reported that their sales volume for August 2021 was lower than it was in August 2019. Additionally, 78 percent of …

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Black-Desert-Resort-Ivins-City-UT
DevelopmentHospitalityLoansMixed-UseMultifamilyOfficeRestaurantRetailUtahWestern

D.A. Davidson Arranges $106M in Bonds for 278-Acre Black Desert Resort at Entrada in Utah

by Amy Works

IVINS CITY, UTAH — D.A. Davidson’s Special District Group has successfully priced and closed $106 million of limited tax general obligation bonds for the 278-acre Black Desert Public Infrastructure District (PID). The proceeds will fund Black Desert Resort at Entrada, a commercial and residential resort in Ivins City. Black Desert Resort at Entrada will offer 148 hotel rooms; 299 hotel condominium units; a 200-acre, 19-hole golf course; miles of nearby trails; a wellness spa; and 46,160 square feet of retail and restaurant space. The property will also feature 32 single-family estates, 783 condominium units and approximately 214,000 square feet of commercial space, with the amenities of the resort center available for full-time residents. The first phase of development is expected to create 500 new jobs and future long-term employment opportunities. Construction on the first phase commenced in 2020 and full buildout of the commercial and residential resort is slated for 2027. The development is being undertaken by Enlaw LLC, a Delaware limited liability company that is primarily owned by Reef Capital Partners.

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AcquisitionsIowaMidwestMissouriRestaurantRetail

Hanley Investment Group Brokers $7.4M Sale of Three Taco Bell-Occupied Properties in Missouri, Iowa

by Kristin Harlow

MISSOURI AND IOWA — Hanley Investment Group Real Estate Advisors has brokered the sale of three single-tenant, net-lease properties occupied by Taco Bell in Missouri and Iowa for $7.4 million. The assets sold to three separate buyers. The seller for the two Missouri properties was a San Francisco Bay area-based private investment company. Jeff Lefko, Bill Asher and Beau Velten of Hanley and Jeff Christian of First Street Brokerage, in association with ParaSell Inc. represented the seller. In Kansas City, a 2,053-square-foot building located at 5700 E. Bannister Road sold to a Springfield, Mo.-based private investor. Brad Thessing of Thessing Commercial Properties represented the buyer. In Bethany, Mo., a 3,200-square-foot restaurant located at 4132 Miller St. sold to a California-based family trust. James Bitter of Fortune Associates represented the buyer. In West Des Moines, a Taco Bell ground lease sold to a Wyoming-based private investor. David Borinstein of Colliers International represented the buyer. Hanley’s Lefko and Asher, in association with Scott Reid and ParaSell Inc., represented the seller, a Kansas City-based private investor. The 2,989-square-foot restaurant is located at 1570 22nd St.

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La-Encantada-Tucson-AZ
AcquisitionsArizonaRestaurantRetailWestern

Macerich Co. Sells La Encantada Lifestyle Center in Tucson for $165.2M

by Amy Works

TUCSON, ARIZ. — Macerich Co. has completed the disposition of La Encantada, an open-air lifestyle center in Tucson. A group of local investors acquired the property for $165.2 million. JLL Capital Markets arranged a $102 million acquisition loan for the buyer. Completed in 2003, La Encantada offers 246,256 square feet of retail space. At the time of sale, the property was 93 percent leased. Current tenants include Crate & Barrel, Tiffany & Co., West Elm, Anthropologie, Athleta, Lululemon, Pottery Barn, Madewell, Warby Parker, Williams-Sonoma, Bluemercury, Barre 3, Core Health & Fitness, Fuchsia Spa and Laseraway, AJ’s Fine Foods, RA Sushi Bar and Restaurant, North Italia and Blanco Tacos + Tequila. Patrick Dempsey of JLL Capital Markets Investment Sales and Advisory represented the seller in the deal. Jeremy Womack and Zane Coffman of JLL Capital Markets Debt Advisory team represented the new owner in the acquisition financing.

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