The Decatur, IL-based agricultural processor took an entirefloor in the building, which recently underwent a $2 millionrenovation project that included redone corridors, entryways, afree health club and conference facilities, Wendorf says. Thebuilding had been at 35% occupied, she said. "This is the bestvalue, they're getting class A rates at class B prices," she says.The average office leases for $8 to $10 net in the building, wherethe largest tenant is the Hennepin County Public Defender's Office,which leases 60,000 square feet.

A central business district building that's 60% leased isn'tdoing too bad in a market that saw a 200,000 square feet ofnegative absorption and a fourth-quarter vacancy increase to 18%,Wendorf says. "That's 5% higher than we were at in fourth quarter2008," she tells GlobeSt.com. "Last year was by far one of theworst years Minneapolis has seen in our history of trackingcommercial real estate. The market has been slow, with layoffs anddownsizing, but there were renewals because companies were just notmoving. Normally, class A space is about 12% vacant, and now we'reat 16%. But I think we're starting to see that turn this year,we've seen a lot of activity, and there have been a couple of otherpockets in the city."

The building is owned by Dallas-based Cawley Partners. TheHelmet Jahn-designed tower is the only property owned by thecompany not located in Texas.