This Week's Chicago Deal Sheet

Equity Commonwealth continues to streamline its portfolio. The Chicago-based REIT announced the sale of 13 properties totaling 3.4M SF for a combined price of $261M.

Equity sold an 11-property portfolio of small offices in upstate New York, totaling 2M SF, for $105M. The portfolio was 80% leased as of June 30. City Place I (pictured), a 38-story, 868k SF office property at 185 Asylum St in Hartford, CT, which was 99% leased, sold for $113M. A 609k SF vacant property at 16th and Race in Philadelphia sold for $43M. In 2015, Equity has sold 82 properties totaling 16.4M SF for a combined $1.7B (including Illinois Center locally), and is in various stages of marketing another nine office properties with a cumulative 2.6M SF.

SALES

Transwestern brokered the following deals:

• Janice Sellis and Paul Barile repped Hamilton Partners in the sale of Stony Creek Promenade (shown) to MEPT, a $7.3B real estate equity fund advised by Bentall Kennedy. Stony Creek, a 105k SF retail development at 4800 W 111th in Oak Lawn, is fully occupied and anchored by a 71k SF Mariano’s Fresh Market and Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant.
• Jeffrey Locascio and Brad Migdal repped Hoist Liftruck in the acquisition of East Chicago Enterprise Center, a 550k SF, 110-year-old building at 4407 Railroad Ave in East Chicago. Hoist Liftruck will relocate its corporate HQ and production facility from Bedford Park in January. Brad secured key financial incentives from East Chicago in the deal.
• Gary Nussbaum, Mike Donovan and David Matheis repped seller Westport Capital Partners in the closing of Corporate Plaza, a 210k SF, five-story office building at 14528 S Outer 40 Rd, in Chesterfield, MO, for $36M. The buyer was Griffin-American Healthcare REIT III. At the time of closing, the building was 98% leased; it's the executive and administrative HQ for Mercy Health, a nonprofit healthcare provider that operates 35 hospitals with $4.4B in revenue.

***

A JV of Ameritus Real Estate Investment Management and Alcion Ventures paid $19.4M for a seven-story building at 549 W Randolph. The seller, the Knight Group, accepted the deal because it was a strong offer and it was a direct deal with no broker commissions.

*** 

DRG and Pearlmark closed on Regent O’Hare Center, an eight-building, 955k SF industrial and office portfolio in Elk Grove Village. Pearlmark’s Matt Haley and Matt Milich repped Pearlmark. The portfolio will be owned as a JV between DRG and one of Pearlmark’s separate accounts. NAI Hiffman was retained for leasing and management services.

***

CBRE’s Jack Brennan, Mike Sedjo and John Hamilton repped the buyer and seller of 3.26 acres of industrial-zoned land at 2210 South Busse Rd in Mount Prospect. Whimsy Intermodal, a drayage company, bought the land from Park Place Partners, and will use it for additional trailer parking. The location allows for 100 additional parking spots near the Elmhurst Road and I-90 interchange.

***

Kudan Group’s Juan Carlos Gomez brokered the sale of Toni's Pizza & Organic Pasta at 455 N Milwaukee. The new owner is opening The Roost Carolina Kitchen at the location this fall. 

LEASES

JLL brokered the following leases:

• Kurt Sarbaugh, Robin Stolberg and Kris Bjorson repped both tenant and landlord in Midland Paper Co’s renewal of 363 N Third Ave in Des Plaines (pictured). Midland leases 156k SF from Prologis at the facility.
• Kurt Sarbaugh and Robin Stolberg repped landlord Molto Properties in a 28k SF renewal at 353 Hastings Dr in Buffalo Grove. Colliers' Brendan Green repped the tenant, AMIC Global.

***

SVN’s Albert M Lindeman repped building owner Caruso Development in the long-term lease of 27k SF at Blackberry Falls Office Campus, 2359 Hassell Rd in Hoffman Estates. Northwest Health Care Associates will occupy a one-story, new construction office building there.

***

First Western Properties’ Paul Tsakiris and Stan Rivas repped a national tenant leasing 337 W Howard in Evanston. The lease is for five years, with renewal options.

***

Duke Realty’s Susan Bergdoll and NAI Hiffman’s Brian Colson repped landlord Duke Realty in the lease of 154k SF at 370 Kimberly Dr (pictured) to GELS Logistics. The lease brings Duke’s Carol Stream portfolio to 100% occupancy. Cushman & Wakefield’s Jason West repped GELS.

***

Avison Young’s Keith Pruitz and Brett Kroner were the sole brokers in a 315k SF, long-term lease renewal for Nemera at 600 Deerfield Pkwy in Buffalo Grove. Nemera, one of the world leaders in the design, development and manufacturing of high-quality drug delivery devices, occupies the entire building, which features 30k SF of office space, 28-foot clear height ceilings, and is rail-served.

***

Kudan Group completed the following leases:

• Jarrett Fradin repped the landlord in the lease of 2925 N Southport to Speech in the City, a speech pathology center currently in the neighborhood. CBRE represented the tenant.
• Scott Reinish repped Eggs Inc in a lease at 680 N Lake Shore Drive. Eggs Inc will open its first Chicago location there this fall.
• Adam Salamon repped the owners in the lease of 1631 W Howard to a tenant that will open an African fusion bistro there in November. Samsara Realty Associates repped the tenant.

FINANCING

Aries Capital’s Jeff Bucaro secured $36M in permanent debt and $7.2M in preferred equity for Innisfree Hotels’ Hampton Orange Beach in Orange Beach, AL. The capital enabled a joint-equity partnership between Innisfree and another Aries client, Janee Hotel Corp, to purchase the Killington Mountain Lodge, a former condo hotel in Killington, VT, and convert the property to a boutique hotel. Jeff has financed over $187M on behalf of Innisfree since 2012. 

HIRINGS

NGKF Capital Markets announced Michael Poe joined the company as a senior managing director in the debt and structured finance group. An 18-year industry veteran, Michael previously worked at Inland Commercial Mortgage Group and Mid-North Financial Services.

KUDOS

Congratulations to Arthur J. Rogers & Co on celebrating its 70th anniversary in Chicago commercial real estate. Arthur J. Rogers was instrumental in developing the O’Hare market into what it is today.

***

MB Real Estate’s Michael Graham, Becky Gualandri and Larry Dunn were awarded the Patriot Award by the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve.