This Week's Chicago Deal Sheet
Bellwether Enterprise Real Estate Capital, its parent company, Enterprise Community Investment, and BMO Harris Bank, along with its joint venture partner Cohen-Esrey, closed a nearly $46M deal to finance the acquisition, rehabilitation and preservation of 315 affordable homes at Elmhurst Terrace, a multifamily community at 100 Fellows Court in west suburban Elmhurst.
Enterprise, BMO Harris and Cohen-Esrey invested $17M to rehabilitate the property, and Bellwether Enterprise, which has leveraged more than $1B in investment activity to preserve affordable and workforce housing since its 2013 launch, provided a nearly $29M Freddie Mac loan to finance the acquisition.
“Bellwether Enterprise is committed to providing flexible financing options for affordable properties throughout the country, especially at a time when communities are becoming more and more expensive for families,” said Phil Melton, Bellwether Enterprise’s Dallas-based national director of affordable/FHA production.
Elmhurst Terrace was constructed in 1947, and rents for its 53 studios, 158 one-bedroom apartments and 104 two-bedroom apartments range from $975 to $1,400. The property has operated with no income restrictions and received no subsidies. This new investment requires that more than 50% of the apartments are occupied by and have rents affordable to households earning less than 80% of the area median income, according to Enterprise officials.
“Rental prices in the Chicago metro area have soared in recent years,” Enterprise Senior Vice President Chris Herrmann said. “Along with our partners, Enterprise understands the crucial need to ensure homes like these remain affordable for people of all income levels so that communities can remain connected to the opportunities Elmhurst offers and thrive.”
EXECS
Waterton hired Christopher Kersten as vice president of reporting and business intelligence. Kersten brings 15 years of data management and business intelligence experience to the Chicago-based national real estate investor and operator. Previously, he was vice president of data management at Performance Trust Capital Partners and director of business intelligence at OpenHouse Acquisitions.
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Scott Steffes joined Wight & Co. as a project director and will help lead large-scale multisector projects for the Chicago-based architecture, engineering and construction firm. He was most recently an associate director/studio head at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, where he worked on mixed-use, educational, commercial and cultural projects across the globe.
SALES
Walton, a real estate investment and land asset company, sold 118 residential lots in the Deer Hills community and 59 residential lots at Riverbend West, both in Belvidere, a Rockford suburb about 71 miles northwest of Chicago. The sale to Newark Holdings totals about 53 acres. Walton purchased the parcels in 2013 with a fund that targeted land and vacant developed lots throughout the U.S. Deer Hills has approximately 1,400 residents, and Riverbend West has about 1,700 residents, Walton officials said.
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A local investor sold for $2.57M a 12-unit walk-up apartment building at 5045 North Northwest Highway in Chicago’s Jefferson Park neighborhood, according to Essex Realty Group’s Matt Feo and Steven Livaditis, who represented the seller. Jordan Multack of Essex represented the buyer.
LEASES
Sterling Bay signed a lease with LQD Business Finance, a Pilsen-based fintech company, at its Fulton Market incubation space, 370 North Carpenter St. LQD Business Finance serves small and midsized businesses through the use of proprietary software and services loans for banks and institutional lenders.
Sterling Bay and its partner J.P. Morgan Asset Management have for several years used the more than 8K SF of creative loft office space at 370 North Carpenter St., a former cold storage facility, as a short-term incubation space for tech companies, several of which then expanded into larger spaces within Sterling Bay’s portfolio. Sterling Bay’s Joy Jordan negotiated the transaction. Cresa’s Allen Rogoway represented LQD Business Finance.
CONSTRUCTION & DEVELOPMENT
Developer JK Equities received a construction permit for 1400 Monroe, a 42-unit condominium development at 1400 West Monroe St. in Chicago’s West Loop. The firm recently demolished the existing building and will soon begin construction of the new 1400 West Monroe. Lakeside Bank financed the construction loan, and the developer expects to deliver the units by summer 2021. Summit Design + Build will lead the construction project. ON Collaborative will handles sales, and unit prices will start around $760K and range up to $2.35M.
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Skender completed interior construction of the 90K SF headquarters of Mondelēz International, the anchor tenant in the new five-story building at 905 West Fulton St. The snack food company’s space includes private access to a 5K SF roof terrace, a café/lobby open to the public, two connecting stairwells, outdoor roof gardens and conference rooms. Skender collaborated with design firms HPA and SCB, engineering consultant IMEG Corp. and CBRE.
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Skender also completed construction on Residences of Crystal Lake, an independent senior living facility in northwest suburban Crystal Lake. Turnstone Development, a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) that develops affordable housing units for low-income families and seniors in Illinois and Florida, owns the 63K SF, 60-unit facility. Providing pre-construction and construction services, Skender broke ground on the project in May 2019 and collaborated with architect UrbanWorks, civil engineer Groundwork and developers DKI and TH Associates.
THIS AND THAT
Mason Asset Management and Namdar Realty Group reopened Chicago’s Ford City Mall on May 1. Officials from the firms say they are following guidelines for retail outlets set out by Gov. J.B. Pritzker in his April 23 update to the state’s stay-at-home order, originally issued in March. The mall, located at 7601 South Cicero Ave., is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Merchants will minimize contact between employees and shoppers and complete payments over the phone or internet if possible, the owner said.
