Accesso Partners LLC has acquired The Towers at West End, twin Class A office towers in suburban Minneapolis on the I-394 corridor from a fund managed by DRA Advisors LLC, for $115.5 million.
The two nine-story nearly identical towers, totaling 497,234 square feet, are 84% occupied and located at 1550 and 1600 Utica Ave. South in St. Louis Park in the West End submarket.
“Ever since we acquired the iconic IDS Center and Crystal Court in downtown Minneapolis in 2014, we have been looking for a premier in-fill suburban office property, “ says Ariel Bentata, managing partner-investments and co-founder of Hallandale Beach FL- based Accesso. “The seller has been an excellent steward of these two highly amenitized, institutionally maintained towers in the city’s vibrant West End neighborhood and we are thrilled to have the assets in our portfolio.”
Brian Rosen, Accesso’s chief investment officer, says, “this is as close to an urban Minneapolis office property as you can find outside the CBD. It is located at the first major intersection, five minutes outside of downtown, surrounded by single family and multifamily housing, retail/ dining, hotels and entertainment, making it extremely attractive to tenants with a large employee base who want convenience and walkability in their daily life.”
Ryan Watts, executive vice president of CBRE Minneapolis office, who brokered the deal for the seller, says “Accesso did a good job of wrestling it away from me before it went to the broad market. We did some soft premarketing, had multiple offers but Brian jumped on it quickly, stayed in touch, did his due diligence underwriting on an accelerated time frame, made a strong best and final offer and closed on time.”
The largest tenant is MoneyGram Payment System with 96,952 square feet, followed by Concur Technologies at 68,902 square feet and Magenic Technologies with 57,147 square feet.
Currently, Towers at West End has a fitness center with locker and shower room facilities, a conference center, yoga studio and on-site café with atrium setting, full-service hair salon, convenience store, workplace tenant lounge with free WiFi and an outdoor courtyard and fireplace.
Rosen says some additional upgrades and improvements are planned to the lobbies.
Accesso Services will handle property management of Towers at West End.
JLL, Minneapolis, provide leasing services.
Susan Hill, managing director of HFF in Houston, provided acquisition financing.
Adds Rosen: “Accesso will look to bring in a co-investor after closing.”
About Accesso Partners. LLC
Accesso Partners LLC is a full-service, vertically integrated commercial real estate investment manager, owner and operator that aims to provide superior returns to its U.S. and international individual and institutional investors. Accesso’s focus is on acquiring office properties in Class A locations in the largest, fastest growing metropolitan cities and premier suburban submarkets throughout the U.S. Accesso’s property portfolio includes 39 office properties covering 15 million square feet. Its affiliate, Accesso Services LLC, provides proactive, cost-efficient property management services with an owner’s mindset. Accesso Partners LLC is headquartered in Hallandale Beach, FL. and has offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston and Minneapolis.