CHICAGO-Property Casualty Insurers Association of America and Lafarge North America are two of the latest companies to sign up for space at the 821,000-square-foot, four-building Presidents Plaza. The two commercial real estate transactions – at 39,256 square feet and 31,191 square feet respectively – means the four-building office complex now stands at 80% occupancy.

Property Casualty (represented by C.J. Kuehl, Mandi Seward and Ellen Steinbrecher of Lee & Associates) and Lafarge (represented by Jones Lang LaSalle's Eric Kunkel and Scott Ohlander) are two companies of many that have signed for space at the office complex, located at 8600-8700 W. Bryn Mawr. During the past year, a total of 272,000 square feet of lease transactions were signed, sealed and delivered.

"The activity level really picked up during the past couple of years," says David Trumpy, senior managing director with Presidents Plaza owner GlenStar Properties. He tells GlobeSt.com that a couple of other major leases signed within the past year include General Services Administration (which took down 36,530 square feet) and LifeStory (which signed for 31,455 square feet). GlenStar acquired the property in 2006 from Equity Office Properties Trust for about $129 million and since that time, invested around $10 million in upgrades.

Though leasing velocity for the 25-year-old office towers did pick up within the past 12 months, Trumpy acknowledges that things have slowed down somewhat. Part of it is continuing economic uncertainty, he says, combined with the upcoming general election and seasonal slowness. "Summer's always a part of this, plus I think people are afraid to make decisions before the election," he comments. He adds that GlenStar will hold onto the commercial real estate asset for the time being.