Welsh bought the property for $8.8 million in July 2006 from thelarge mail-order catalog operation, and now has a $30-million planfor the property. Bill Krake, president of Welsh Construction,tells GlobeSt.com that the company will tear down an existing100,000-sf office building on the site, renovate another 89,000-sfoffice and build the facility that will house its headquarters. Afollowing phase would include another 100,000-sf office building,Krake says.

With a lease up in June 2008, Krake says the company had a fewreasons for making the move. "It's not just the growth of thecompany," he says. "We've got the opportunity to design, build, ownand manage our own headquarters building. Also, most of theemployees live over in this area, and we're only seven miles awayfrom our current location."

The office market in the area is expanding, with severalprojects ready to start, Krake says. "I think there's a growingdemand for office space on the west side of Minneapolis, and thiswill be good class A office space," he says. The building shell forthe headquarters will cost about $10 million, or $100 per foot, tobuild, he says. Welsh will lease out the remaining space for about$14 to $15 per sf, net, Krake says.