CHICAGO — Sumitomo Corp. of Americas (SCOA) has acquired the 581,107-square-foot office portion of a 27-story tower in downtown Chicago. The purchase price was undisclosed, but Crain’s Chicago Business listed the purchase price at $111.5 million. The trophy-class building is located at 203 N. LaSalle St. in downtown’s Central Loop district.
The office space is situated on the 13th to 27th floors of the Class A, mixed-use building. The transaction did not include the retail space on the first and second levels, or the 10 levels of parking. The building offers convenient access to the Clark and Lake Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) station and the underground pedestrian walkway that spans the Loop.
The tower is currently 87 percent leased. Notable tenants include DLA Piper, the University of Phoenix and Masuda Funai. Avison Young will serve as the tower’s exclusive leasing agent.
The property is LEED-Gold certified and carries an Energy Star label. Skidmore, Owings & Merrill designed the tower in 1985.
The company plans to make improvements to the 29-year-old tower’s lobby and elevators. SCOA will also install tenant amenities, such as a fitness center.
Though this is the firm’s first Chicago acquisition, SCOA plans to make future investments in this region.
“Sumitomo has been active on the coasts for years and has always viewed Chicago as a world-class city,” says Tomonri Wada, senior vice president of the Living-Related Business Group at SCOA. “We have been looking for the right opportunity to invest in Chicago and hope to increase our presence here.”
The seller was a joint venture between HCI Capital AG and M&J Wilkow. SCOA was represented by Suzanne Martinez of Avison Young in this 1031 tax-deferred exchange transaction.
SCOA has acquired and sold commercial buildings in cities like New York, Washington, D.C., Honolulu, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco, Phoenix and Tempe, Ariz. The firm most recently acquired a 290,000-square-foot office building at 450 B Street in downtown San Diego for $73 million this past December.
New York-based SCOA also takes on a supporting role with international investors looking to invest in the U.S. real estate market. SCOA is the largest subsidiary of Sumitomo Corp., a leading trader of goods and services.
— Nellie Day