Colorado Real Estate Journal - November 4, 2015
An Arlington, Virginia, buyer looking to place 1031 exchange money paid $18.95 million cash for a 100,800-square-foot office complex in Golden. Maryland Associates Ltd. II, which is affiliated with Arthur L. Walters Company Inc., bought Golden Ridge Office Park from Westfield Income Partners XV, a partnership of Denver-based Westfield Cos. A seasoned investor in his 90s, the buyer snapped up the 100 percent-occupied property just as Newmark Grubb Knight Frank brokers Dan Grooters and Riki Hashimoto were taking it to market. It was his first investment in Colorado. “We were going out with a marketing strategy and this buyer came to the table,” said Grooters, explaining the buyer had sold a building in downtown Atlanta and need to move quickly. The deal closed within 2½ weeks. “Just the speed of the transaction was wonderful,” said Grooters. Golden Ridge Office Park consists of two single-story buildings, 57,600 and 43,200 sf, at 500 and 560 Golden Ridge Road in the foothills of Golden. They are next to a bike/pedestrian bridge over U.S. Highway 6 that connects to the Jeffco Government complex and W Line light-rail station. The buildings were completed in 2000 and 2001. “It’s kind of an interesting project because they are flex buildings, but they put glass windows on the back side, and it’s really Class A office buildout with high ceilings,” said Grooters. Panorama Orthopedics & Spine Center has its administrative offices in the office complex, which also houses the headquarters for The Boppy Co. Other tenants are the Office of the Colorado State Public Defender, Allegion, Rovi Corp. and TechLaw Inc. “You’ve got a pretty strong credit rent roll, and good, staggered lease rollover,” said Grooters. “Westfield came in a couple of years ago and extended leases and expanded some tenants and really put it in a good position for the market.” Westfield acquired Golden Ridge in late 2012 for $13.91 million, or $138 per sf, with plans to sell it after seven years at a projected price of $171 per sf, according to information on its website. It ended up achieving $187.99 per sf after less than three years of ownership.