MLL Capital Plots $500M Medical Office Portfolio

CHICAGO—MLL Capital has acquired a 63,067-square foot medical office building in the Ravenswood neighborhood on Chicago’s North Side. The transaction is part of the commercial real estate investor’s plan to build a $500 million portfolio of institutional assets in the medical office, laboratory and life sciences sector.

“The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrates that healthcare and scientific research are foundational elements of our society and our economy,” said MLL Capital president and founder Kyle O’Connor in announcing the purchase. “As we emerge from the crisis, we believe that healthcare and scientific advancement will have a renewed public policy focus, providing a catalyst for further investment into and support of these fields,” O’Connor added.

The building’s current tenants include Advocate Children’s Medical Group, part of Advocate Healthcare, the largest health system in Illinois, as well as Northside Rheumatology and Little Steps Pediatrics.

The acquisition of the building, which MLL Capital plans to rebrand as the Ravenswood Medical Center, comes on the heels of its December 2019 purchase of another Chicago-area medical office building at Advocate Sherman Hospital in Elgin, Illinois, as part of a deal that added 250,000 square feet of medical office space to the company’s portfolio across four markets.

The seven-story building was built in 1972 as part of the former Ravenswood Hospital and features an onsite parking garage. It also sits within blocks of the Damen stop of the CTA Brown line and the Ravenswood stop of the Metra commuter rail’s Union Pacific North line.

O’Connor said that “medical office, laboratory and life science properties remain attractive investment opportunities given their resiliency and growth potential.”

“We’re proud of the role many of our tenants are playing to combat the pandemic and look forward to supporting their effort to deliver high-quality medical services and scientific advancement,” he said.