A joint venture between Lowe Enterprises and GE Commercial Finance Real Estate purchased the 350,559-square-foot Old Orchard Towers office complex in the northern Chicago suburb of Skokie, Ill.
The value of the transaction was not disclosed.
This marks the first transaction by the Lowe/GE Commercial Finance Real Estate joint venture, which will look to acquire up to $250 million of suburban office properties nationally.
Old Orchard Towers is a three-building complex comprised of two seven-story office towers and a smaller, connecting “concourse” building set on almost seven acres. The acquisition also includes an adjacent, vacant 2.5-acre parcel that may be considered for future expansion.
Lowe will invest approximately $8.1 million to renovate and upgrade the campus. An improvement program has been designed for the common areas, which includes creating larger and more accessible building lobbies, more efficient layouts for large full-floor users, and floors designed for multiple, smaller users. The program also will redirect pedestrian and vehicle circulation to align with the new lobbies and create more attractive and distinctive entrances, with each tower having its own identity within the campus setting. The 16,000-square-foot concourse building will be redesigned and may include new tenant amenities, such as a restaurant or other food services, conference rooms and a fitness center. With its abundant light and large open plan, the building may also be an attractive option for an educational use or creative company.
Los Angeles-based Lowe Enterprises is a national real estate investment, development and management firm.
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