The deal was reported by New Boston Fund. Cooperative Educational Services is the largest tenant at the 47,437-sf building and occupies approximately 25,000 sf of space. The other major tenant at the property is the Visiting Nurses Association, which leases nearly 20,000 sf of space there. The two-story office building is 100% leased and sold for more than $110 per sf. New Boston Fund acquired the property in September 1998 for $3.7 million, which included capital and tenant improvements.
New Boston Fund officials note the firm realized a significant return on its original investment.
"We experienced a return on equity of more than 100% on the sale," says Jerry Rappaport Jr., president of New Boston Fund. "We were able to add significant value to the building through releasing the space for the long-term and Cooperative Educational Services saw an opportunity to acquire an asset that made sense for their operations. It was a win-win situation."
Jim Carroll, chief financial and operations officer for Cooperative Educational Services, notes his company liked the location of the building, which is just two miles from other company properties. "The location was the biggest overriding factor for buying the building," he notes.
Carroll adds that the firm intended to eventually acquire 40 Lindeman Dr. 18 months ago when it originally moved into the building. "We needed to expand our operations and this location fits our plans nicely," he says.
The company, which provides educational services to pre-kindergarten to 12th grade students, employs 400 workers, including 40 at its Lindeman Dr. office.
It is the first building sale on behalf of the firm's New Boston Investment Fund LP IV, a fund that currently owns more than $200 million of properties along the East Coast and throughout the Midwest. Fund IV maintains extensive holdings in Connecticut, including Trefoil Corporate Park, a 257,201-sf office development in Trumbull, and 100 Pearl St., a 281,866-sf office building in downtown Hartford.
Company officials say that despite the sale, the New Boston Fund remains committed to Connecticut and is actively searching for investment opportunities in the Hartford and Fairfield County markets.
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