Central Loop birthplace of coworking firm Expansive hits market

Investors in a small Loop building leased to retailers and a coworking space provider are seeking a modest markup from their 2013 purchase price.

A company called Iconic Investments, registered as the manager of the LLC that owns the property at 73 West Monroe Street, has hired local brokerage Greenstone Partners to market the 53,000-square-foot building for sale. The seller is seeking $7.6 million, which would represent a price of about $142 per square foot.

Iconic bought the 141-year-old Monroe Street property for more than $5.6 million nine years ago, public records show.

The current asking price is about on par with with the offering of a larger Loop office building at 209 West Jackson Boulevard that’s been listed by Miami-based owner Market Street Partners — a property that was listed for sale in July and last traded for $24 million in 2018. The 144,000-square-foot building isn’t expected to sell for too much more than than its prior price, which comes to about $165 per square foot.

Coworking company Expansive got its start at 73 West Monroe, opening up a flagship location in 2012. It now offers flex spaces across the nation and still leases 34,000 square feet in the Monroe building on a long-term deal that includes 3 percent escalations in rent annually, according to Greenstone.

The building, constructed in 1881, has a retail tenant on its first floor. French fast-casual restaurant Pret A Manger inked the ground-floor retail lease through 2026, although the chain has been paying rent and is expected to continue to do so despite having shuttered nearly all of its Chicago locations in 2020, closing 17 between the Windy City and Boston.

“While Pret A Manger is ‘dark,’ they are paying rent through its expiration in 2026,” said Jason St. John, a broker with Greenstone. “This remaining term gives an investor a runway to add value through reletting the space at a reasonable pace while maintaining consistent cashflow.”

The Expansive lease also offers a landlord option to terminate or downsize the tenant’s existing space, St. John said.

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