CHICAGO—The Midwest division of Transwestern started off the year with about 260 professionals, but Mike Watts, the president of the Houston-based firm's regional office here, tells GlobeSt.com that about 35 additional people have since been brought on board.
“We're looking to add good, quality people who can fit in and operate at a high level,” he says. “We feel like it's a good time for us to expand our service lines, not just in Chicago, but also across the Midwest. We've been adding people in the cities we're operating in,” including Detroit, Minneapolis, St. Louis and Milwaukee.
As reported in GlobeSt.com, earlier this year Transwestern acquired 20-member Epic Realty Partners an industrial real estate group in Rosemont, a suburb of Chicago. The addition of Epic established Transwestern as one of the region's top five industrial real estate providers, company officials say.
Furthermore, Transwestern Development Co. also recently started a joint venture with Chicago-based Ridge Property Trust, called Ridge Development, which will also strengthen its position as an industrial provider. The partners will focus on developing warehouse, distribution and manufacturing facilities, among other projects.
“This joint venture is a catalyst to the expansion of Transwestern Development Company's industrial development program,” Carleton Riser, president of Transwestern Development Co., told GlobeSt.com in March. “Ridge Property Trust has a strong reputation and track-record of successful execution in some of the most desirable industrial markets in the country.”
And Watts likes what he sees happening in other Midwest markets, which should create opportunities for Transwestern to expand. “We're paying a lot of attention to Detroit because we think it's going to be a strong growth market for Transwestern,” he says. Although that city has had long struggle with population loss, deindustrialization and municipal bankruptcy, the region has many underlying strengths, including the revival of the auto industry and the recent solid performance of the downtown. “Detroit still has a perception problem, but there's just a good vibe out there.”
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Brian J. Rogal
Brian J. Rogal is a Chicago-based freelance writer with years of experience as an investigative reporter and editor, most notably at The Chicago Reporter, where he concentrated on housing issues. He also has written extensively on alternative energy and the payments card industry for national trade publications.
