Commonwealth Building, fully leased, sold in Boulder

BOULDER — Two multimillion-dollar building sales in Boulder County this month are indicative of the sting felt by local developers in the wake of the downturn in the office lease market. The sales are a boon to Boulder’s economy but also show a conservative streak among buyers in the market.

In the largest sale, the Commonwealth Building at 1843 Folsom in Boulder was sold for $3 million to a trio of investors led by Neil Lubar of Gibbons-White Real Estate. Lubar, along with George Vicenzi of New York and an unnamed partner in Aspen, purchased the 17,000-square-foot building for roughly $175 per square foot.

Owners Keith Jenkins, Lee Erb and Ken Wagers sold the building to Lubar and his partners while Neil Littman of the Colorado Group also received a referral fee from the sale.

“We were looking for a conservative, blue-chip Boulder investment, and we liked the concept of the property, the structure of the building and the location,” Lubar explained. The building is occupied primarily by dentists and other medical professionals and is at 100 percent occupancy.

“We interviewed all the tenants, and, at that point, we really liked the deal. They are dentists who have been in practice for a while and are going to stay there a long time. A lot of times when these dentists leave their practices, too, they will sell it so we automatically inherit a new tenant. The market is pretty shaky right now as far as office space goes so this was kind of a bright spot in the market where medical and dental use is a little bit more conservative in terms of tenants,” Lubar said.

In another $1.1 million deal, Irwin & Hendrick sold the 14,825-square-foot property at 408 South Pierce St. in Louisville to a local partnership called Musei LLC. The company bought the building, which was brokered by Littman and Audrey Berne of The Colorado Group, in order to specifically place a single tenant. Stassen North America, a tea company, will occupy the building following the completion of the sale.

ARAPAHOE VILLAGE CHANGES: The Arapahoe Village Shopping Center soon will have a new look and a new tenant as the national pet supply chain Petco moves in and the Arapahoe Village 4 Theaters and the European Cafe move out. This month, both of the latter businesses will close their doors in anticipation of a large facelift of the 159,000-square-foot shopping center, which is owned Calpers and National Retail Partners.

San-Diego-based Petco, which operates more than 600 stores around the country, is opening its new Boulder location as part of a growth plan that calls for an additional 60 stores per year.

“We’ve been talking with this center for several months because there was some question of whether the theater was going to move,´ said company spokesman Shawn Underwood. “The bottom line is that Boulder is certainly a good community for us. It has some things that we look for when we locate a store, including a good number of pet lovers in the area, a high number of educated people and higher-than-average income.”

Underwood said the 17,000-square-foot store would employ up to 30 staff members. The company operates 17 stores in Colorado and will be opening in its 44th state, Wyoming, this year. The level of potential growth represented by new locations like Boulder is tremendous, according to Underwood.

“We have a good chunk of growth ahead of us,” Underwood explained. “We have about 620 stores, and we think there is a market for 1,250 currently. We may even adjust those numbers up as the numbers of pet owners increase.”

Colorado Cinema hopes to locate another theater site in Boulder in the near future but for the meantime, the cost of badly needed renovations kept the company from renewing its option for five additional years.

CULVER COURT: Dean Callan & Company, which owns the 1950’s-era strip mall located at 1540 and 1590 28th St., is tearing down and starting over. The company, operating under the auspices of 28th Street Retail LLC, has recently received city approval to redevelop the 10,000-square-foot building as a three-story mixed-use property with street-level shopping below 16 residential units.

“It’s kind of a precursor of things to come in that corridor,´ said Tim Van Meter, architect for the project. “The strip shopping center is a bit of a decrepit and economically exhausted piece of property. We’re talking about commercial buildings built in the 1950s that are pretty tired and are starting to move beyond their functional lifestyle.” Dean Callan & Company is located proximate to the property and is doing several similar projects in Boulder.

Van Meter explained that the Culver Court center fits with the needs and desires not only of the developers but also in terms of the city’s future plans.

“We’re working on similar projects around Boulder, but this is really the first one in the 28th Street Corridor that is truly mixed-use. The city is just now initiating an area plan of the corridor to look at commercial/industrial properties to allow housing into these areas. This fits a lot of policy decisions that have not been made yet but are on the table. If we can get this project built, it will be a tire to kick as people move through the land use changes.”

The partnership hopes to have permits by the end of the year to allow them to break ground on the project in early winter, with leasing beginning by fall of 2004.

ISABELLE RANCH: The land-use staff of Boulder County has recommended that the planning commission conditionally approve a plan to locate 12 high-end residential lots on Isabelle Road about one-half mile west of Highway 287. Phil Irwin of Irwin & Hendrick is leading the project, which is a partnership between Isabelle Ranch LLC and Chip One LLC.

The 68 acres under consideration has historically contained a nursery with several greenhouses, and some residents have expressed concerns about the change in use from agricultural to residential. According to the decision delivered on the project’s conceptual plan, the covenant-controlled property is planned for high-end buyers who are seeking horse property or the “open feeling, mountain vistas and the rural environment.” The proposal would allow some agricultural uses to continue on the property, such as allowing owners to keep a limited number of livestock.

NEW BUSINESSES: Two new companies are moving into Boulder, with promising developments in the retail, medical and technology sectors, respectively.

In downtown Boulder, a new shoe and accessories boutique will open in the former location of Aria, which closed last month at 2043 Broadway. Frolick: Shoes For Her, owned by Ashley Taylor, will carry women’s shoes, handbags and jewelry in its 1,600-square-foot streetside retail location. Taylor will hold a grand opening on Aug. 11.

On the medical front, Ted Knapp at Gibbons-White recently leased 2,000 square feet at 2875 28th St. in the Villa Center to MRI Imaging Partners of Boulder, which provides MRI services.

“It’s positive absorption, that’s for sure,” Knapp said and also indicated the facility has an innovative approach to providing clients with necessary services.

“Currently, the only places that have MRI facilities are hospitals, and they’re not exactly customer-oriented. You go to your appointment and have to wait for a long time because anyone who comes in with an emergency comes in ahead of line. This facility will only schedule one client per hour and you will not get backed up the way that you do at the hospital.”

MRI Imaging Partners is a franchise operation of Horizon Medical, which operates 24 similar facilities around the country. The five-year lease has rates in the mid-to-high teens, according to Knapp, on a building owned by local developer Terry Palmos.

Also, Energy Velocity, a startup division of Global Energy Decisions LLC, leased 17,700 square feet of office space at the U.S. Bank building at 1495 Canyon Blvd. Beck Gamble and Hunter Barto of Dean Callan & Company represented the landlord.

FIRST COLORADO TITLE : Linda Huntsman and Audrey Berne of The Colorado Group recently brokered a deal to bring First Colorado Title Company into 10,184 square feet of the newly renovated property at 2760 29th St. in Boulder. The average lease rate over the five-year term is in approximately $13.50 triple net, according to Berne.

WEBROOT SOFTWARE OFFICES: Russell Lee of New Option Partners recently represented Webroot Software, providers of computer security software, in finding new offices at 2990 Center Green Court South. The software maker took 7,006 square feet in a two-year lease.

WESTMINSTER

BRADBURN TO OPEN IN FALL: A mix of restaurant and service businesses will anchor two new main street buildings at Bradburn, a mixed-use development on 120th Avenue between Lowell and Sheridan in Westminster. Two main street buildings of 11,000 square feet each will provide services and amenities not only to residents of the nearby new housing development but also to neighbors around the area.

“We’re being very selective with the mix of tenants,´ said Melissa Machell, a leasing representative with the Continuum real estate group. The project is being developed by Bradburn Community Associates LLC and Continuum Bruchez Associates LLC, which are both members of the group. So far, the partnership has signed several restaurants, including Ted’s Montana Grill, Baja Fresh Mexican Grill and Camille’s Sidwalk Cafe. Other amenities include Appearances Hair Color and Design Studio, a full-service salon started by a local husband-and-wife team, a dry-cleaning service, ice cream shop, coffee store, TCF Bank and the Goddard School. Rocky Mountain Presbyterian Church also plans to build a new church in the community within the next two years.

“We’re trying to stay with a lot of quality food and a few services. We did not want to go with a lot of really typical chains. We wanted to create a destination for lunch and dinner for nearby residents but on the other hand we want to fulfill the needs of all the people in the community,” Machell said.

The first main street building is almost completely leased and the brokers hope to have the second building full by the time the operation opens in the fall. Similar projects developed by Continuum include 16 Market Square, a mixed-use development in lower downtown Denver and Belmar, a $500 million mixed-use development in Lakewood. The company also plans to start construction on an additional building at Bradburn, which will have two levels with office or residential units above additional retail.

“We thought it was very important that the first residents at Bradburn have the same amenities as those who join the community later,´ said Kevin Foltz, Bradburn project manager. “We made a conscious decision to develop the residential and retail at the same time, which is something that is very unusual for new mixed-use communities.”

NORTHRIDGE CHURCH’S UNIQUE LOCATION: While an office park might be an unusual location for a house of worship, the developers of the Northridge Office Park at Park Centre in Westminster think it’s a fine idea. NorthPoint Covenant Church, headed by Pastor David Perez, will start construction this year with the intention of opening the new building to its large congregation early next year.

“What makes it interesting and unique is that it is not strictly an office park,” explained Dan Christopherson, who is handling public relations for the development, which is a partnership between Imprimus and Prime West Development. ” This is an institutional and office park. Russ Hadley, who owns Imprimus, has a certain genius for this idea. He created an aesthetically pleasing, truly parklike atmosphere, which makes it appropriate for a church or the DeVry University campus or a business.”

The property was developed according to the natural contours of the land and includes several visually attractive water detention ponds that are proximate to the Westminster trail system. In addition, Westminster has recently identified a nearby property on which to locate a future recreation center. The church itself will be located on an overlook in the middle of the 96-acre development with great views of the Front Range.

KELLER-WILLIAMS RELOCATES: The Keller Williams Northwest Market Center relocated its offices last month to 9191 Sheridan Blvd., Suite 310 in Westminster. The move allows the real estate agency to significantly expand its size and offerings in the market.

“We are growing this office with Realtors who are integrity based, committed to a high level of service, and who understand the importance of life-long learning,´ said Nikki Irwin, team leader at the Northwest Market Center. “We are not only attracting top Realtors, but we now have room for the teams and groups that are forming in our office.”

The agency more than doubled its space through the move, enabling the office to grow from its current sales force of more than 100 agents. The new facility has three conference areas, expanded office space and improved technology and computer facilities for training.

VANS SKATE TO CLOSE: The VANS Skate Park at I-25 and 104th Avenue has closed its doors as of June 22. The facility had been rumored to be suffering financially for some time. The property is now likely to become a hot target for developers in light of the recent announcement of Mandalay Gardens, a $70 million to $80 million retail development to be located across the railroad tracks from the VANS location.

LONGMONT

ILX LIGHTWAVE SCALING BACK: ILX Lightwave, a provider of electro-optic instrumentation based in Bozeman, Mont., is downsizing its local operations. Formerly located in more than 36,000 square feet at 6797 Winchester in Boulder, the company recently leased 2,241 square feet at 1801 Sunset in Longmont from Gary Aboussie at The Colorado Group.

“They’ve scaled down considerably, but they still have their operation in Montana,” Aboussie said. Representatives from ILX Lightwave could not be reached for comment.

CIRCLE GRAPHICS MOVE: Circle Graphics has moved its operations from Boulder to a new 30,991-square-foot facility at 120 9th Ave. in Longmont. Brandi Spencer, who represented the landlord, Colorado & Santa Fe Partners, confirmed the deal.

“We’re just a small company, and we rented a new space here in Longmont. Beyond that, I don’t have any information,´ said Hank Ridless of Circle Graphics, who declined to detail the reasons behind the move.

NEW SPORTS FACILITY: Brandi Spencer also leased 64,927 square feet in the same building at 120 9th St. to a new business, Longmont Sports Warehouse. The brand new business plans to convert the former industrial space into an indoor athletic facility featuring hockey, soccer and paintball.

BROOMFIELD

PK LEFFLER MOVES: PK Leffler, a locally owned division of Arizona-based Paul-Koehler Engineers, will move into 23,400 square feet of 390 Interlocken in Broomfield later this summer. Russell Lee and Aaron Evans of New Option Partners represented the engineering firm while David Hart of Insignia/ESG represented the landlord, Amber Drive 2, LLC, in the transaction.

“It’s shell space and the landlord is providing a turnkey office for them. It is a deal that is really indicative of the market,” Lee said.

LOUISVILLE

ROCKS AHEAD: Sundecco Rockreations, a fabricator of artificial stone facades, took over 2,079 square feet at 1721 Boxelder, Suite 105 in Louisville. The three-year lease was brokered by Linda Huntsman and Audrey Berne of The Colorado Group.

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