This Week's Chicago Deal Sheet
Turner Impact Capital acquired the 1,155-unit Ellyn Crossing Apartments community in west suburban Glendale Heights, its fourth Chicago-area multifamily development.
The sales price was $137M, according to seller Rockwell Property Co., which acquired the complex in three phases beginning in 2013, including the purchase and deconversion of hundreds of condominiums from individual owners.
The purchase by Turner was the largest-ever Chicago suburban apartment sale based on number of units and sale price, according to Rockwell officials.
"Rockwell acquired a property in disarray financially, operationally, and physically, and breathed new life into the community," the company said in a statement. "During their tenure of ownership, Rockwell acquired all of the condominiums, paying off the mortgages for many individuals unable to do so, addressed years of deferred maintenance, and significantly improved the overall operations of the property."
The property is now 96% occupied, Rockwell officials added.
The Santa Monica, California-based Turner's portfolio now includes nearly 2,800 units in Chicagoland and more than 11,200 units of workforce housing in the U.S. It serves more than 18,600 low- and moderate-income residents, according to company officials, as it continues to seek out properties that provide homes to renters who can’t afford high-cost housing near their workplaces but earn too much to qualify for subsidized housing.
“Our scalable investment model has uplifted communities far and wide by putting affordable, quality housing within reach for thousands of families while generating strong risk-adjusted returns for investors,” Turner Impact Capital CEO Bobby Turner said in a statement. “The model proves that profits and purpose can — and indeed should — coexist.”
The company also plans to upgrade the 45-acre Ellyn Crossing Apartments as part of a sustainability initiative, he added. It will install low-flow water fixtures, meter readers and Energy Star-certified appliances, as well as new HVAC systems, insulation and LED lighting.
In addition, Turner will create an on-site resident center to provide after-school programs, employment and rental assistance, healthcare, fitness activities and neighborhood watch events.
EXECS
JLL promoted Timothy Martin to managing director to lead its new U.S. life sciences property management business. Prior to his current role, Martin served as JLL’s group manager for a large institutional investor in East Cambridge, Massachusetts. He has managed life sciences assets for nearly 20 years, including BioMed Realty Trust’s Center for Life Science in Boston.
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CRG expanded its residential group by adding Morgan Whiteley as its new director of investments. In her role, Whiteley will help lead land acquisitions, development underwriting, market research and product positioning, among other duties, in top U.S. markets. She previously served as the associate director of capital markets–debt and equity placement at Walker & Dunlop.
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Newcastle Limited promoted Steve Merchant to chief operating officer. He joined Newcastle in 2020 as managing director of multifamily operations. Prior to joining Newcastle, Merchant served as managing director of operations with Magnolia Capital. He was also a senior vice president with Equity Residential.
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Western Specialty Contractors hired Jason Paoli as regional business development manager in Chicago. He has 10 years of commercial property management experience. Prior to Western, he served as a real estate services administrator for CBRE in north suburban Northbrook, and as an assistant property manager for NAI Hiffman, Colliers International and Sterling Bay, all in Illinois.
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Entre Commercial Realty promoted Brian Bocci to principal. He has been with Entre since 2009 and specialized in industrial brokerage while leading its north suburban and southeast Wisconsin brokerage activities.
SALES
New York-based Sovereign Partners bought Two Pierce Place, a 490K SF Class-A office tower in northwest suburban Itasca, for $24M from Piedmont Office Realty Trust, according to a report in Crain’s Chicago Business.
JLL worked on behalf of Sovereign Partners to secure a three-year fixed-rate loan through an insurance company. Two Pierce Place is located in DuPage County and within the 300-acre Hamilton Lakes Business Park. The 25-story property was built in 1991 and once was the global headquarters of Gallagher Insurance. The JLL Capital Markets team representing the borrower was led by Matthew Schoenfeldt.
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A Mexico-based limited liability company bought a 10K SF shopping center at 4801 211th St. in south suburban Matteson for $5M. Austin Weisenbeck and Sean Sharko, of Marcus & Millichap’s Chicago Oak Brook office marketed the property on behalf of the seller, a local developer. The buyer was secured and represented by Carlos Cain of Marcus & Millichap’s Denver office. The deal was part of a multi-property purchase, with debt structured by Anita Paryani-Rice of Marcus & Millichap Capital Corp.
The complex has been 100% occupied by the same four tenants since construction in 2011: Verizon, Chipotle, Five Guys and Vitamin Shoppe.
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Hangout Lighting bought 450 North Leavitt St., an 18K SF, three-story brick and timber loft building in the Kinzie Corridor, from Drinkwater for $2.1M. Cawley Chicago’s Zach Pruitt and Nicholas Schaefer represented building ownership.
LEASES
The Chicago office of Duke Realty Corp. inked a lease agreement with Eaton, a provider of power management technologies and services, for its newest facility, located at 10000 Woodward Ave. in southwest suburban Woodridge. The company began building the 371K SF speculative development in August 2021. It’s now 100% pre-leased, and Duke plans to complete it by July. Jason Lev with CBRE represented the tenant in lease negotiations, while Duke Realty was represented by Jason West and Sean Henrick at Cushman & Wakefield.
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Atlanta-based developer IDI Logistics pre-leased its 351K SF speculative building at 1301 North Abbott Road in southwest suburban Romeoville to Republic National Distributing Co., a North American distributor of wines and spirits. Delivery operations from this new site are expected to begin in April. The development is one of three active projects IDI plans to complete in the Chicago market within the next six months. Stephen Schneidau and Britt Casey of Cushman & Wakefield represented the tenant in the transaction. Dan Leahy, Adam Roth, Packy Doyle and Kevin Cooney of NAI Hiffman represented IDI Logistics.
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Thales Defense & Security signed a 24K SF, long-term lease for its Midwest regional offices at 750 Commons Drive, a 205K SF, two-building property in Aurora. Thales will move from 1444 North Farnsworth Ave. in Aurora when the new lease starts in mid-2022. 750 Commons is now 100% leased. Stanton Road Capital purchased the property off-market in 2018 and added amenities such as a new fitness center, renovated lobby and updated tenant lounge with food and beverage options. Colliers Chicago’s Francis Prock and Dave Florent are the leasing agents for the property. Thales was represented by JLL’s Kellen Monti and Chris Bynum.
CONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT
548 Development and Related Midwest had the winning response to a request for proposals for a 21-acre site owned by the city of Chicago in the North Lawndale neighborhood at Roosevelt Road and Kostner Avenue. The $38.4M project will replace what had been a notorious dumping ground for hazardous materials with a solar-powered 302K SF industrial complex, as well as a pair of community centers and space open to the public. The proposal was selected from among six responses to the RFP, which was issued through Mayor Lori Lightfoot's INVEST South/West initiative.
THIS AND THAT
Pedestrian activity in Chicago’s downtown reached almost 65% of December 2019 levels, the highest average seen this year, according to the Chicago Loop Alliance. The alliance counted pedestrians with 18 devices located along State Street and found more than 1 million people walked along State Street during the week of Dec. 13, the month’s busiest week.
The omicron wave and the holidays pushed down office occupancy, according to the alliance. After hitting a high in late November at 39.1% of 2019 levels, office occupancy sank to 29.7% in December.
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The Boulder Group released its latest net lease big-box report and found the 2021 national asking cap rates in the single-tenant big-box sector decreased to 6.25%. This represented a 50-basis point decrease when compared to the prior year.
