Ektin Johnson sells off CTC portfolio for $393M, winds down operations

LOUISVILLE — Etkin Johnson Real Estate Partners, one of the main developers of the Colorado Tech Center, has sold off its remaining 16 properties in the Louisville business park for just under $393 million and plans to wind down the company’s operations after more than three decades in business.

That’s good for the largest sale by dollar volume in Colorado history. BizWest first reported last fall that the portfolio, along with other Etkin Johnson holdings, was on the market.

The sales have yet to be recorded with Boulder County, and Etkin Johnson is not identifying the institutional investor that scooped up the 1.67 million-square-foot portfolio.

However, 20 limited liability companies with names that include the CTC properties’ addresses or other references to CTC have been registered with the Colorado Secretary of State’s office in recent weeks. For example, one of the newly formed entities is called “SREIT 1480 Arthur Avenue LLC.”

The entities have the same street address as Miami-based real estate investment trust Starwood Capital Group, a private investment group with more than $75 billion in assets under management. Starwood Real Estate Investment Trust Inc., , which did not immediately respond to request for comment Wednesday, is a REIT that invests in properties worldwide.

According a company news release, properties included in the deal were:

• 321 S. Taylor Ave.
• 1480 Arthur Ave.
• 346 S. Arthur Ave.
• 195 CTC Blvd.
• 1775 Cherry St.
• 1795 Dogwood St.
• 1886 Prairie Way
• 1900 Cherry St.
• 1900 Taylor Ave.
• 1960 Cherry St.
• 2000 Taylor Ave.
• 633 CTC Blvd.
• 2035 Taylor Ave.
• 600 Tech Court
• 700 Tech Court
• 725 Tech Court

The $393 million sale comes two years after Etkin Johnson set a then-record selling off a 1.95-million-square-foot industrial portfolio for $247.5 million.

“One of the core contributors to Etkin Johnson’s success has always been our ability to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to industry trends,” EJ chairman Bruce Etkin said in the release. “Our investments in industrial/flex space in prime locations over the last decade have proven prescient. Our CTC portfolio was in high demand, allowing us to select buyers who understand the value they bring and achieve strong returns for our investors.”

CBRE brokers Jeremy Ballenger, Tyler Carner, Jim Bolt, Tim Richey and Jessica Ostermick represented Etkin Johnson in the deal.

“These irreplaceable, highly functional buildings represent Colorado’s best-in-class industrial real estate, located between Denver and Boulder in one of the area’s most supply-constrained markets. In addition to the quality of the assets, the portfolio drew interest for its strong credit tenancy, representing a mix of high-growth industries including aerospace, life sciences, manufacturing, e-commerce and third-party logistics,” Ballenger said in a prepared statement. 

Etkin Johnson was founded in 1989 by Etkin and David Johnson and has since sold off a total of nearly $900 million in real estate. 

With the sale of its CTC assets, the company plans to cease most of its leasing and management operations, but will maintain ownership of its FalconView multi-family residential project in Colorado Springs. 

Etkin Johnson also continues to own its two-building, 195,000-square-foot Axis 25 project directly west across Interstate 25 from the Ranch Event Center and the Embassy Suites in Loveland. 

Other remaining holdings include the Edge 470 commercial park in Parker and the Church Ranch Business Center in Westminster.

Etkin and Johnson plan to step away from the business into retirement to spend more time with family and on philanthropic efforts, according to a company spokeswoman. 

In addition to the CTC sales, Etkin Johnson recently offloaded its Atria commercial development in Broomfield for $56.25 million. That two-building campus is home to the headquarters of iconic footwear brand Crocs Inc. (Nasdaq: CROX) and Conga, a rapidly growing end-to-end digital document transformation company registered to AppExtremes LLC.

In late 2020, Etkin Johnson sold its Enterprise Park Business Center in Denver for $77 million, according to media reports.

This story is developing and will be updated as new information becomes available.

© 2021 BizWest Media LLC

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