BY THE NUMBERS

CHICAGO—The overall trend toward smaller, more efficient workspaces took a bit longer to influence law firms, but lately an increasing number have embraced the new philosophy. In Chicago, 65% of transactions between the first quarter of 2016 and this year's second quarter have resulted in a contraction of space, according to a new report from CBRE. Firms reduced their footprint by 23% on average, a bit lower than the national average of 27% in the same period. The second-most active market tracked in the study, Chicago experienced 1.6 million square feet of leasing activity in this time frame, with 90% of the transactions listed as renewals. “One of the most efficient ways for law firms to reduce their operating costs is to address their office space costs,” says Todd Lippman, vice chairman with CBRE. “By really examining their space needs, many firms are reconsidering long-held assumptions about how their attorneys work.”

NEWS & NOTABLES

COLUMBUS—Coastal Ridge Real Estate, a provider of multifamily real estate investment and management services, has launched a third-party property management business. The Columbus-based firm expects to grow its third-party property management portfolio to 2,500 units by end of 2018. Kicking off the launch, DHD Ventures picked the firm to manage three of its student housing properties. These include: Monarch 716, a 176-unit, 592-bed complex located at 100 Forest Ave. in Buffalo; Monarch 815, a 176-unit, 576-bed complex located at 1109 University Pkwy. in Johnson City, TN; and Monarch 444, a 128-unit, 440-bed complex located at 650 SC-544 in Conway, SC. “Coastal Ridge has invested millions to build a first-class property management platform to service our own real estate portfolio,” says Jay Harkrider, Coastal Ridge's managing partner and president of property management. “The next logical step in our growth was to now offer a fee based management platform for other owners.”

CHICAGO—A joint venture between LAMB Properties, LLC and IBT Group has hired Newmark Knight Frank as the exclusive office leasing agent for 1200 W. Fulton, its new 1.2 million-square-foot, mixed-use development in Chicago's Fulton Market District. LAMB and IBT plan to build about 900,000 square feet of office space, a boutique hotel, a ground floor plaza with a mix of urban retail and food and beverage venues, as well as 700 underground parking spaces, on the 3.3-acre site. William Rolander, NKF's executive managing director and Jon Cordell, senior managing director, will lead the office brokerage team. “We saw this as a rare and unique opportunity, which could easily shift the epicenter of Fulton Market to the west,” says Andrew Bluhm, chief executive officer of LAMB. Located west of Chicago's Loop, Fulton Market, previously known as the Meatpacking District, is now better known as the home of Google, which occupies a former cold storage building.

DETROIT—Southfield, MI-based Hayman Co. has just unveiled its new concept for the five-building office complex in suburban Troy that it purchased earlier this year for $55 million. Now called PentaCentre, the rebranding, along with a $10 million renovation, will make the office space more desirable for current and potential tenants, according to Hayman officials. “We are focused on making PentaCentre a more modern and functional campus so our tenants are energized from the moment they step in the front door,” says Alan Hayman, chief executive officer. Along with external updates to the complex, tenants will also see renovations to building lobbies and common-area bathrooms, as well as a new state-of-the-art conferencing center. The 732,000-square-foot, five-building office complex is located along E. Big Beaver Rd.

DEALTRACKER

CHICAGO—Cushman & Wakefield, Inc. served as the exclusive advisor to Thor Equities in arranging $51 million of financing in connection with the development of 816 Fulton Market and 905 Fulton Market in Chicago. The senior mortgage financing was provided by Centennial Bank. The properties sit in the heart of the West Loop's booming Fulton Market corridor. This mixed-use retail and office project will fit into the transforming neighborhood, once dominated by wholesale meat companies and cold storage facilities. The architecturally significant buildings are located near public transportation and adjacent to popular restaurants, new residential projects and several Fortune 100 corporate headquarters. A C&W equity, debt and structured finance team of Steve Kohn, Dave Karson, Gideon Gil, John Alascio, Chris Moyer and Alex Lapidus represented the borrower.

BUILDING BLOCKS

INDIANAPOLIS—A joint venture between Indianapolis-based Strategic Capital Partners, LLC and PCCP, LLC has started construction on Metro Air Business Park Buildings Two and Six and will complete the project in the second quarter of 2018. The $27 million development will occupy 28 acres at the northwest corner of Ronald Reagan Pkwy. and Stafford Rd., less than one mile from Indianapolis International Airport, home to the second largest FedEx hub in the country. The business park has direct access to I-70 with links to I-65, I-74, I-69 and I-465. SCP first began developing Metro Air in 2006. Buildings Two and Six will add nearly 500,000 square feet of additional space to the park, and bring its total to more than 1.2 million square feet. Current tenants include DJ Ortho, Rolls Royce, Fiserv Solutions, Expeditors International, TRICOR Braun and Hiab USA.

BY THE NUMBERS

NEWS & NOTABLES

DEALTRACKER

BUILDING BLOCKS

Instant Insights /

Middle Market Digest-The Midwest

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