Incoming. The first article will only be a teaser however....

 

BTW -- I'll rename this thread when we know more.

 

 

Stark has buyer for downtown nuCLEus properties
By Ken Prendergast / December 31, 2021

 

Properties that were part of Stark Enterprises’ ill-fated nuCLEus megaproject are in the process of being sold in a private, off-market transaction. However, the scope of the sale, the buyer’s identity and the buyer’s intentions remain a mystery. Public records emerged this week showing that there is a pending transaction.

 

MORE:

https://neo-trans.blog/2021/12/31/stark-has-buyer-for-downtown-nucleus-properties/

Ive never truly liked any of Starks plans for this lot, glad to see him sell

NUCLEUS IS DEAD; LONG LIVE NUCLEUS!!

 

😉

so excited to be finally getting a sheetz downtown

1 minute ago, snakebite said:

so excited to be finally getting a sheetz downtown

Personally, I’m holding out for a McDonalds—not just any McDonalds though. One of the two-story ones with a playplace. 👌 mmmm, yes. As a backup, however, I will accept a 1200 ft. Jenga tower. Anything else is unacceptable. Mystery developer (David Blitzer prolly lol) these are your marching orders. 

‪Give me a David Blitzer / blackstone group purchase so Blackstone and Blitzer can build a high rise with condos on top that he can look down on his new Baseball team from…‬ 

In all seriousness, thanks @KJPfor bringing joy and excitement to a crappy, covid-wrecked end to 2021. I find more things to be pessimistic about every day, but I’m OPTIMISTIC about this city, and your reporting helps illuminate why that optimism is well founded.

 

To 2022! May somebody build something on this parking lot!

Edited December 31, 20213 yr by LlamaLawyer

Of course reading that Stark is selling this land is welcome news but even more encouraging to me is the speed in which not only did Stark decide to sell but how quickly he was able to find a buyer at a high price. That bodes well for hopefully a large development going up and soon to boot. We are not used to things getting done that fast in this market. Based on how painstaking it is to put together land and tenants for anything on a large scale this is lightening fast. 

 

Now on to speculation. Purely as an interested observer I would prefer for a large mixed use tower as finding office tenants alone in our market is difficult at best. In addition while residential seems to be the greatest need once the old SHW property comes on board it's most likely going to be converted to housing. That's a lot of housing and if you include the Centennial that's even more so mixed use seems to be the best bet for a high rise. Another thing in its favor is its location. As much as SHW should kick-start ancillary development in the Warehouse District I think this property is even more valuable as it connects East 4th St. and Gateway. Filling that hole with a large development benefits all three (the whole would be greater than its parts). Can't wait to see what's coming and how tall it will be lol.

This is good news.  Hopefully they are selling to a buyer with the wherewithal to actually deliver.   Lots of potential synergies to this site for a Bedrock or MLB affiliated group, especially given the upcoming renovations at Progressive Field.  Alternatively, how great does Progressive Tower sound?  Imagine the visibility for them during Guardians games, and impact to recruiting millennial and gen-z talent to a downtown address!

Great news @KJP! Was this the project you mentioned a couple days ago that you were waiting on an announcement for? 
 

Count me as one of the fans of the jenga tower.  I remember that if built, it would’ve been even taller than SHW’s new headquarters by a couple feet. That with SHW going up at the same time would’ve been pretty sweet for the city. 

 

Whoever buys the land and eventually develops it, I’m hoping they will bring some height to that section of Prospect. Looks like they’d have to in order to justify the cost of the land. Stark did Ohio a favor with TMUD so the NuCLEus project won’t be a complete loss for the city. Hopefully we get something grand at the site in the near future. 

Geez - Until Benesch pulled out I figured Stark was going to pull it off somehow and get Nucleus built figuring he gets Round 1 or Round 2 TMUD. 

I feel bad for Stark after 7 years of trying to get it done. Hopefully the new buyer has deep pockets and wants to get something built. 

Hopefully it is not someone who sits on it and speculates on it for another 10 years. WHO could this MYSTERY BUYER be?  Local or Out of town?

My wish would be and JohnSummitt mentioned it upthread  - A new Progressive Tower.

 

I was always rooting for Nucleus, particularly with the almost jaw dropping original 54 story version - certainly partly  because of the skyline changing impact it would have had on Cleveland.  
 

But, honestly, I was never a fan of the Borg-ish Jenga tower and how it would’ve been a harsh  juxtaposition with the elegant Key and Terminal Tower.  For that matter, I didn’t aesthetically like the 2 building version with its brown-hued unattractive (IMO) apartment complex.  
 

So, I’m with those that celebrate the quick sale and can, for the moment, salivate over the possibility of a new Progressive Tower or a possible high rise residential condo to overlook the ballpark. 
 

Cleveland’s been on a pretty great hot streak development-wise, especially given the pending rise of SW.  A large new project - particularly one with significant height - in Gateway would really be sweet - and hopefully  we’ll get something even more attractive then Nucleus ever was.  Happy New Year, CLE! 

Edited December 31, 20213 yr by CleveFan

How long ago did Progressive build their HQ in the burbs? I have to imagine the big wigs there are seeing all of this development downtown (especially SHW) and are feeling a little jealous.
They clearly have the funds for a new tower.. but do they have the need?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

12 minutes ago, GREGinPARMA said:

How long ago did Progressive build their HQ in the burbs? I have to imagine the big wigs there are seeing all of this development downtown (especially SHW) and are feeling a little jealous.
They clearly have the funds for a new tower.. but do they have the need?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Progressive already had significant development on the property in 2000.  The leaders of Progressive may not care about the development downtown.  The site where the Sherwin Williams tower was available, not to mention the proposed site on Lakeside where the Progressive Tower was planned.  In the end, a campus-type development is what they preferred.  I once went on a tour of their IT facility.  One of the things that was stressed is that they liked independence and flexibility.  The campus is situated so that it has two separate power feeds with each one capable of supporting their electrical needs.  They also have a significant backup power generating capacity as well.  This past year they have invested in a significant number of solar power panels.  They seem to always to be adding to their facilities in Mayfield Village and Highland Heights.

4 hours ago, LlamaLawyer said:

Personally, I’m holding out for a McDonalds—not just any McDonalds though. One of the two-story ones with a playplace. 👌 mmmm, yes. As a backup, however, I will accept a 1200 ft. Jenga tower. Anything else is unacceptable. Mystery developer (David Blitzer prolly lol) these are your marching orders. 

Nah, This is clearly a TMUD project for continued surface parking, as some developer is betting on the rumored return of Lebron to the Cavs.   😜

Gilbert?

Gilbert is what I was thinking, too.  It would make a lot of sense for him to try to capture some of the spin off value from the Cavs and RocMoFiHo.

If Gilbert, might it replace/add to any existing Bedrock plans near Gateway/Tower City? At least that's what initially came to my mind...

Farewell Nucleus, we never knew thee. 
I was a fan of the OG design and liked it less and less as it got watered down. 
Here’s to a new year, a new vision and (hopefully) a new owner with the ability to follow through. 

Good luck to Stark with the sale, and good luck to all of us that a new entity might turn these properties into something with as much vision as Nucleus. 

 

It's appears chic on these pages to beat up and poke fun at Stark, but I think those who do are mostly unkind to a guy with bold vision who was clearly trying to make things happen. Everyone's a critic. Some, gracelessly so, but 🥂here's to the strivers of our world. They don't always succeed, but they mostly try their best, and do so on their own terms.

 

I am in complete agreement with ExPatCleveGuy. I have always admired the design audacity of the original Nucleus concept. It was clear that Start wanted to deliver to his hometown a building that would force others to think outside the box and break with the need to be ultra conservative. While he may not have succeeded in delivering on his quest, I do think he moved the needle of architectural design expectations.

Happy New Year, everyone!

I had mixed feelings about the original design. The residential tower and office building were pretty good (especially the residential tower) but I loathed the horizontal hotel component. The facade and cross bracing had some appeal. The proportions and especially the interaction with the roof of the office building? 👎🏼👎🏼

Other than the height, I was not very fond of the original design. Seems like it would have looked out of place amongst all the old buildings currently in the area. 

I didn't like the original design at first either but for some reason it grew on me and now l like it, especially the cross piece. Too bad it didn't happen.

1 hour ago, LibertyBlvd said:

Other than the height, I was not very fond of the original design. Seems like it would have looked out of place amongst all the old buildings currently in the area. 

To me, that was the appeal of how out of place it looked.  You can't build old buildings amongst old buildings,  so why not embrace the mix of old and new?

I just want to know did the Pesht project or Nucleus project have more pages on this forum.

 

I hope its the team who built the building next to West Side Market

This is the best Nucleus-related news we've heard in 5 years.  identifying the buyer as Gilbert or Blitzer, both billionaires would be even better news... or a JV between the two.  Let's go Cleveland!! 

21 hours ago, LibertyBlvd said:

Other than the height, I was not very fond of the original design. Seems like it would have looked out of place amongst all the old buildings currently in the area. 

I personally felt that Stark was at the limits of his financing.  Even Beacon was delayed due to financing issues.  The "boldness" of the original design may have been a detracting factor in lining up backers.  The various methods to try to secure public sector financial support and multiple downsizing revisions did nothing to help, either.

22 hours ago, cfdwarrior said:

You can't build old buildings amongst old buildings,  so why not embrace the mix of old and new?

No, but you can build new buildings that blend in with older buildings.  I guess I'm not a big fan of mixing old and new.  When I was in Zurich, it was a tale of two cities. One side of the river had shiny new buildings while the other side of the river had narrow cobblestone streets and buildings that were probably a few hundred years old.  It was nice that they preserved the "old city".  But I am digressing.  Sorry.

both of the lots look like a grand scheme for a cliffs tower 😉

21 minutes ago, tastybunns said:

both of the lots look like a grand scheme for a cliffs tower 😉

 

It may have a significant office component, but I don't think it will be Cliffs.

^ So, it’s not a spec office?

4 minutes ago, roman totale XVII said:

^ So, it’s not a spec office?

 

No one is going to build spec office right now.

Rocket Mortgage?

watch with an anchor off his back next stark will take this fire sale property money and get a few partners to develop that prime property car wash he owns on la cienega in los angeles. we’ll be watching. umm, not exactly caring, but will note it. 😂

45 minutes ago, mrnyc said:

watch with an anchor off his back next stark will take this fire sale property money and get a few partners to develop that prime property car wash he owns on la cienega in los angeles. we’ll be watching. umm, not exactly caring, but will note it. 😂

Had to look it up

 

”Stark paid $21.25 million for the quarter-acre lot at 431 N. La Cienega Boulevard”

 

wow

I find it intriguing what is going on with this property.  The idea that somebody would pay top dollar to just continue with a surface parking lot seems unlikely.  Dan Gilbert has had an impact in downtown Detroit, so I wonder if he may be the buyer here?  With the Bolivar project looking pushed off, if not cancelled...and the lack of for sale condos in downtown...this seems like a prime opportunity for Gilbert to build a mid/high rise office/condo/hotel complex right next to his arena.  I know I may be reaching, but why not, right?

57 minutes ago, cfdwarrior said:

I find it intriguing what is going on with this property.  The idea that somebody would pay top dollar to just continue with a surface parking lot seems unlikely.  Dan Gilbert has had an impact in downtown Detroit, so I wonder if he may be the buyer here?  With the Bolivar project looking pushed off, if not cancelled...and the lack of for sale condos in downtown...this seems like a prime opportunity for Gilbert to build a mid/high rise office/condo/hotel complex right next to his arena.  I know I may be reaching, but why not, right?

I don't think this is a reach, per se, we just don't have any evidence of it.

 

IF Dan Gilbert is the buyer (which there's no specific reason either to suspect or to discount as a possibility), I would expect a pretty awesome project, potentially even at the scale of Hudson's Site in Detroit. Since Rocket went public, he has such outrageous amounts of money that there would be no reason for him not to go big. He's clearly invested (in both senses of the word) in Cleveland to almost the same extent as Detroit.

Gilbert has had Tower City and the land of Phase II Casino for years, if he buys it, he just may do it so someone else does not develop the area.

18 hours ago, KJP said:

 

It may have a significant office component, but I don't think it will be Cliffs.

You had me at significant office component.  :)

2 hours ago, LlamaLawyer said:

I don't think this is a reach, per se, we just don't have any evidence of it.

 

IF Dan Gilbert is the buyer (which there's no specific reason either to suspect or to discount as a possibility), I would expect a pretty awesome project, potentially even at the scale of Hudson's Site in Detroit. Since Rocket went public, he has such outrageous amounts of money that there would be no reason for him not to go big. He's clearly invested (in both senses of the word) in Cleveland to almost the same extent as Detroit.

As I mentioned upthread, Bedrock seems like an intriguing possibility, although the fact that they already own other plots of developable land downtown would imply that it isn’t them.  Still, this is a great location next to RoMoFiHo.  Interestingly, on their site https://www.hudsonssitedetroit.com/ they refer to their work there as a “Transformational Mixed Use Development”.

1 hour ago, punch said:

Gilbert has had Tower City and the land of Phase II Casino for years, if he buys it, he just may do it so someone else does not develop the area.

 

Rocket Mortgage also just went public in 2020, which took Dan Gilbert from billionaire to obscene billionaire. Given he's got about 900% more paper assets to leverage than he did previously, I think it's reasonable to be optimistic about his being more aggressive.

Is Benesch still a possibility for the site or has that ship sailed?

2 hours ago, LibertyBlvd said:

Is Benesch still a possibility for the site or has that ship sailed?

 

Sailed. In fact, given the number of office reductions in 200 Public Square, they have yet to commit to expansion space at Key.

Seems large enough for a New Courthouse build

I find it intriguing what is going on with this property.  The idea that somebody would pay top dollar to just continue with a surface parking lot seems unlikely.  Dan Gilbert has had an impact in downtown Detroit, so I wonder if he may be the buyer here?  With the Bolivar project looking pushed off, if not cancelled...and the lack of for sale condos in downtown...this seems like a prime opportunity for Gilbert to build a mid/high rise office/condo/hotel complex right next to his arena.  I know I may be reaching, but why not, right?

Wait the Bolivar project is possible cancelled?!

Sent from my Pixel 6 Pro using Tapatalk

7 minutes ago, MyPhoneDead said:

Wait the Bolivar project is possible cancelled?!

Sent from my Pixel 6 Pro using Tapatalk
 

I may be wrong but I think he was referring to the Geis condo project on the New York Spag House lot, not the new apartment project currently winding its way through the city approval process.

^ I was talking about Geis...sorry for the confusion.

 

1 hour ago, cfdwarrior said:

^ I was talking about Geis...sorry for the confusion.

 

OOOOOH Okay phew, I got nervous lol