REAL ESTATE: Condo complex brings Wyo flavor to Greeley real estate

GREELEY — Russ Smart’s fond of his old Wyoming home.

That explains the name of Smart’s new West Fork Village condominium development, now under construction in west Greeley.

West Fork is the name of the stream that meanders through the Smart family’s former ranch near Douglas, Wyo., which the Smarts recently sold after five generations of ownership.

In fact, West Fork Village, a $24 million, 180-unit project, is loaded with Wyoming references. Floor plans go by the name of The Teton, The Yellowstone and The Saratoga.

The development partnership, West Fort Village LLC, includes Smart and his wife, Amy, his father-in-law and mother-in-law, Jim A. and Dorothy Willox, and his brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Jim H. and Tione Willox.

Smart, former operations manager for Technipak in Greeley, said the family jumped into the development game because they were “tired of buying investment properties.”

But the partnership’s first venture in real-estate development is ambitious.

“When we presented the (development) model to an accountant for a $24 million project he said, ?Most people start with a duplex,'” recounted Chuck Rehmer, a real estate broker for The Group Inc., who is marketing West Fork Village.

Besides the Wyoming monikers, West Fork Village offers some unique amenities. The side of the property that faces U.S. Highway 34 is lined with garages that double as a noise buffer.

The complex will feature an onsite manager, and a 7,500-square-foot clubhouse will include an indoor-outdoor pool and two guest suites, which will allow guests of West Fork residents to stay on site at hotel prices.

“Most condos have an off-site manager — there’s a real disconnect there,” Rehmer said.

McWhinney accepts third-party work

FORT COLLINS — One would think that McWhinney Enterprises has its hands full with all of the projects popping at its Centerra development in Loveland.

Alas, McWhinney has found another outlet in the real-estate world. Earlier this year McWhinney took on the role of third-party property manager for Poudre Valley Hospital’s 260,000-square-foot Harmony Campus facility.

“We’re pursuing that (third-party management) on a very limited basis,´ said Nick Christensen, vice president of real estate for McWhinney. ” This is the primary third-party account we have at this point. Most of our other (management work) is McWhinney-related.”

Realtor’s good deeds get noticed

FORT COLLINS — Linda Norton’s favorite social cause is affordable housing.

But few people get the opportunity to espouse their cause on a national platform.

Norton, a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, was picked by the National Association of Realtors to appear on a television advertising campaign to promote the good works of NAR members.

Film crews were in Fort Collins last month to shoot Norton at the Northern Hotel, a low-income senior housing project that was backed by Funding Partners for Housing Solutions. Norton was chairwoman of Funding Partners when the Northern Hotel project was launched.

The commercial is scheduled to appear during the week of June 24, although precise times and programs haven’t been identified, Norton said.

“Last year, this group of commercials was aired on ?West Wing’ and ?The Today Show,'” Norton said.

Norton’s contributions were first recognized by the NAR last fall when it named her as a winner of the trade group’s Good Neighbor Award, which led to a $5,000 grant for Funding Partners.

The NAR plans to donate another $2,500 in exchange for Norton’s work on the commercial.

Landlord puts credit befor cuisine

FORT COLLINS — In the last two years, the owner of Oak Street Plaza in downtown Fort Collins has seen two restaurants pass through his corner space at Oak Street and South College Avenue.

Enough is enough.

Faro Najoumi, who bought the building in 1999, made the tactical decision to find a tenant outside the food-service sector.

First Community Bank has signed a 15-year lease for the 4,500-square-foot space, with multiple five-year options to stay beyond that term.

“I’d say it was strategic in the sense of going with a more stable, better-credit tenant and do a longer-term deal,´ said Brad Van Hull, a broker with Van Hull Commercial Real Estate, who listed the property for Najoumi.

Van Hull said “three or four” restaurants showed an interest in the site, and two even entered letters of intent.

“But for a variety of reasons, it made more sense to go with the bank,” he said.

Fifteen years is a pretty good start.

Editor Bob Baun covers real estate for The Northern Colorado Business Report. He can be reached at (970) 221-5400, (970) 356-1683 or via e-mail at bbaun@ncbr.com. His fax number is (970) 221-5432.

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