Colorado Real Estate Journal -
A New York investor with an affinity for properties in the Denver metro area recently purchased Garrison Business Park in Lakewood. “I sold a building in New York and decided to look for another building, and the one that I liked the best was this one at Sixth Avenue and Garrison Street, Garrison Business Park,” said Howard Dean of Tarrytown-based H. Dean Properties. Dean said the property has good bones and tenants, and provides an attractive return. “We negotiated for a long time. Finally, with the help of T.J. Smith, we ended up with a deal,” said Dean. John Benitez of Benitez Investments LLC represented Dean in the transaction. Garrison Business Park is a two-building industrial/flex project that fronts West Sixth Avenue. Located at 608 and 610 Garrison St., it comprises 50,040 square feet on 4.43 acres of land. It sold for $5.35 million. “We had about seven offers on that property,” said Smith, who represented seller Real Capital Solutions with fellow Colliers International brokers Brad Calbert and Matt Keyerleber. Smith said that although, “There is a long-standing tenant history within the property,” there were some “occupancy issues” when Real Capital Solutions bought it for $3.8 million three years ago. Colliers International helped lease up the buildings, and with occupancy at 98 percent, Real Capital Solutions decided to sell. “It was a value-add investment for us,” said Graham Riley of Real Capital Solutions, who noted the property’s occupancy was around 70 percent when Real Capital Solutions acquired it. “T.J. Smith and Colliers did a good job of finding a 1031 buyer who wanted a stabilized asset. “It was a good deal for us. I think it will be a decent long-term hold for the buyer as well,” Riley said. Most of Garrison Business Park’s 21 tenants range from approximately 1,200 to 3,000 sf. Café Del Sol, a Mexican restaurant, has been there for many years and is the largest tenant. Built in the 1980's, the property has drive-in loading and 15-foot ceiling heights. “It’s got great access of off Sixth Avenue to get downtown or to shoot out west,” said Smith. Dean plans to redo the buildings’ exteriors right away and in spring will undertake major landscaping improvements. “It just needs some TLC,” he said. Dean said his father began investing in Colorado commercial real estate many years ago. “I like the Denver, Colorado, area. We’ve been investing in Denver for over 50 years,” he said. The company, which has commercial real estate assets in a half-dozen states, including New York, Pennsylvania and California, currently owns seven properties in the metro area. Among them is Denver Airport Business Park, a three building flex/industrial park at 6850, 6860 and 6890 Argonne St. that Dean acquired in partnership with Benitez. “Those buildings are doing just great,” said Dean. “We bend over backward for our tenants,” he said. “We want the tenants to know who we are. We know them all.” Dean, whose daughter lives in Southwestern Colorado, said he plans to continue to invest in Denver-area assets “if the right property comes along.”