Colorado Real Estate Journal - April 4, 2018
A real estate investment firm looking to expand its Denver holdings paid $67.2 million for 1660 Lincoln, a 31-story Uptown Denver office tower. Westport Capital Partners bought the 284,604-square foot asset from Unico Properties Inc., which completed a $17 million repositioning of the Class A building in 2016. “We’re excited about owning a building that has some really strong presence as you’re coming in from the Capitol on Lincoln, and we’re excited to add additional amenities to the building and help continue its transformation after all of the work that the prior owner had put into it,” said Westport Managing Director Eric Clapp. Westport Capital is looking to add indoor bike storage, a tenant lounge with a gaming area, potentially additional food and beverage opportunities, and slightly enhanced fitness and conference centers. There is a “healthy spread between the LoDo and RiNo submarkets and the Uptown submarket” that the company believes will enable it to fully stabilize the building and allow it to push lease rates, Clapp said. Tenant Planning Services, Faction and Trinity Petroleum Management are among tenants in the building, which was 70 percent leased at the time of the sale, according to Holliday Fenoglio Fowler LP. HFF represented Unico in the transaction and procured the buyer. It also arranged a three-year, $52.64 million floating-rate acquisition loan for the buyer through Acore Capital. The HFF investment advisory and debt placement teams included Senior Director Peter Merrion, Senior Managing Director Mark Katz and Director Leon McBroom. Merrion said, “1660 Lincoln was very well received in the market due to both the strength of the Uptown submarket along with the outstanding job Unico did in renovating the building’s exterior and interior.” The building was built in 1972. Unico Properties created a new, sky-lit lobby and entryway, added new central plant and HVAC systems, and completed other upgrades. “With 1660 Lincoln, Unico saw an opportunity to execute on a repositioning strategy that gave a 45-year-old asset renewed relevance in the market,” said Austin Kane, Unico Properties vice president and regional director. “Through a focused capital plan that added tenant amenities, new common areas and state-of-the art building systems, we were able to make the building more appealing and functional for a modern workforce and solidify its place as a leader in its competitive set.” A block off the 16th Street Mall, 1660 Lincoln includes a parking garage off Sherman Street and offers multiple transit options, with a Free MetroRide stop across the street and Civic Center Station a block to the south. It has a WalkScore of 95, a TransitScore of 90 and a Bike Score of 97. Connecticut-based Westport Capital Partners, which has offices in California, Montana and the United Kingdom, specializes in opportunistic, value add and core-plus properties. Its Colorado assets include office buildings at 10700 and 10800 E. Geddes Ave. in Englewood and 7100 Belleview, an office building it purchased in 2015 and repositioned. Clapp said Westport is a big believer in Denver because of its diversified economy and ability to attract people from across the country. Other News A 15,234-square-foot multitenant office building in Castle Rock sold for $3.45 million. The seller was 1189 ADBP LLC, and the buyer was 34th Avenue Estates LLC, according to public records. The building is part of Elk Crossing, just east of Interstate 25, near the intersection of Plum Creek Parkway and Plum Creek Boulevard. Corey Sandberg and Jeff Johnson of the Johnson Ritter Team at Pinnacle Real Estate Advisors represented the seller. “The mutually beneficial sale of 1189 S. Perry saw our sellers capitalize on over a decade of hard work and ingenuity on an asset they built,” said Sandberg, associate adviser. “Our clients will be passing to the buyers a coveted, 100 percent occupied investment, which benefits from a high-net-worth market and stable tenancy due to the limited amount of local office space. It was a pleasure to help two parties advance their real estate portfolios.” Ciancio Ciancio Brown leased 11,307 sf of office space at 1660 St., Suite 2000, in Denver. The law firm is relocating from the suburbs to downtown, said Trent Rice of NAI Shames Makovsky, who represented the tenant. The lease was signed with landlord Unico Properties just prior to the building’s sale to Westport Capital Partners.