Posted November 22, 200519 yr From the 11/19/05 PD: Duke Realty will sell off huge suburban holdings Saturday, November 19, 2005 Joe Guillen Plain Dealer Reporter Duke Realty Corp., one of the largest owners of commercial real estate in Northeast Ohio, plans to leave the market. The Indianapolis-based real estate investment trust recently told its employees that it would sell off its local holdings gradually. The company hasn't decided how long that will take, said Wayne Lingafelter, senior vice president of Duke's Cleveland operations. Duke owns about 30 percent of the total office space in Cleveland's suburbs. "It's a bombshell, obviously," said David Browning, managing director of the Cleveland office of CB Richard Ellis, a commercial real estate services firm. "It's a disturbing sign. Unfortunately, it is just another one of those signals that we're not one of the prime places to be investing for growth." But Alec Pacella, vice president of investment services at Grubb & Ellis Co., said the pullout may provide opportunities for other developers and produce better prices for tenants. Lingafelter said Duke's reasons for leaving included brighter futures in other markets for office and industrial real estate. http://www.cleveland.com/business/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/business/1132392928249280.xml&coll=2
November 23, 200519 yr Well now, that's quite a downer! "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
November 24, 200519 yr Maybe so. But I hate to see anyone leave the Greater Cleveland market. Perhaps they're in the same boat as Forest City Enterprises, which seems to have unrealistically pessimistic views of local business opportunities. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
November 24, 200519 yr You're completely right about Forest City. In a way, I kind of wish they'd take themselves and their pessimism and get out of town -- they certainly don't seem to believe much in this city anymore. Someone I know just met with Al Ratner the other day, and the comments Ratner was making about our city's future were pretty horrific. Who needs people like that around?
November 25, 200519 yr Cleveland's business leaders can either be agents of change, or barriers to it. Those who are barriers seem to base their views on trends (the past). Those who are change agents seem to look at the region's strengths and seek to build on them. The way I see it, the Forest City's look for places where growth is already occurring and then build. In other words, they wait for the risk-takers to do the heavy lifting, and then they capitalize on it. I think that's pretty weak. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
July 25, 200618 yr From Crain's Cleveland Business, 7/25/06: Duke completes sale of area industrial properties By STAN BULLARD 11:35 am, July 25, 2006 Duke Realty Corp. (NYSE: DRE) announced this morning it has completed the sale of its 10-building industrial portfolio in Northeast Ohio to First Industrial Real Estate Corp. (NYSE: FR). Chicago-based First Industrial, the largest publicly traded owner of a diversified industrial portfolio in the United States, gained another 458,000-square-feet of industrial property in business parks in Glenwillow Village, Strongsville and Solon in the transaction. First Industrial entered the Northeast Ohio market last September by buying a portfolio of 18 of Duke's older industrial properties as part of a joint venture with the California State Teachers Retirement System that included property in multiple markets. First Industrial and Indianapolis-headquartered Duke are publicly traded real estate investment trusts. The most recent sale includes many Northeast Ohio's prime industrial properties that are attractive to the national realty investors. The properties involved in the deal are: http://www.crainscleveland.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060725/FREE/60725005/1004/rss01&rssfeed=rss01
July 26, 200618 yr Hey, if First Industrial bought the portfolio, hopefully they have redevelopment plans for it. This could be great news for Cleveland. The company I work for bought a bunch of distressed shopping centers from Glimcher, and we've fixed a bunch up and sold them off. The Hunter's Ridge redevelopment in Gahanna is an example. The K-Mart went dark there, then Glimcher backed out, and people could have started wringing there hands at that point. However, we bought it, signed a deal with Kroger to build a Marketplace where the old K-Mart was, and are redoing completely the 30 year old facade of the shopping center. Sometimes change of ownership is good!!!
September 24, 200618 yr From the 9/23/06 PD: Duke Realty plans to put office spaces on market Saturday, September 23, 2006 Henry J. Gomez Plain Dealer Reporter The end is near for Duke Realty Corp.'s dominance of the Northeast Ohio commercial real estate market. Next month, the Indianapolis company expects to put the first of what ultimately could be three chunks of concentrated suburban office property on the market. By splitting up and spreading out the sale of its 2.2 million-square-foot office portfolio, Duke would avoid the risk of flooding the market, driving down demand and, thus, prices. The strategy also would give Duke time to fine-tune and raise occupancy. "Right now the strategy is still being developed," said David Browning, managing director of the Cleveland office of CB Richard Ellis Inc. The commercial real estate services firm is working with Duke as it prepares to go to market with its remaining properties here. http://www.cleveland.com/business/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/business/115900097137770.xml&coll=2
September 25, 200618 yr Maybe so. But I hate to see anyone leave the Greater Cleveland market. Perhaps they're in the same boat as Forest City Enterprises, which seems to have unrealistically pessimistic views of local business opportunities. I don't view the sluggish growth rate or economic projections an excuse for failing businesses in Cleveland. I think the biggest threat to econmic growth is skeptism of business leaders and poor business culture spewing pesimism. Good businesses will succeed in Cleveland. You may have to try harder at developing a good product here, but smart business will succeed if you are creative and innovative.
October 15, 200618 yr From the 10/10/06 PD: Departing Duke sells properties Two former vice presidents of realty firm buy industrial land Tuesday, October 10, 2006 Henry J. Gomez Plain Dealer Reporter Duke Realty Corp., the Indianapolis real estate investment trust that's ditching its holdings in the Cleveland market, didn't have to look far to find a buyer for 330 acres of undeveloped industrial land. Restaurateur Ross Farro has joined with developer Spencer Pisczak - both former senior vice presidents in Duke's Northeast Ohio office - to acquire the properties. Pisczak declined to discuss financial details of the deal, expected to close this week. Included in the package are 114 acres in Glenwillow, 130 acres in Hudson, 75 acres in Strongsville and 11 acres in Macedonia. Those properties became available when Duke decided last fall to close up shop in Northeast Ohio and pursue opportunities elsewhere. "Ross and I had stayed close," said Pisczak, who worked with Farro for four years. "When the company announced they were exiting, we got together to compare notes." Duke already has unloaded about 2 million square feet of developed industrial properties and is in the midst of marketing - in phases - more than 2 million square feet of office space. Pisczak said he and Farro plan to develop several warehouse and industrial-type buildings on speculation and build others to suit potential buyers' or tenants' needs. http://www.cleveland.com/business/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/business/1160469726282470.xml&coll=2
June 25, 200717 yr From the 3/17/07 PD: King Group buys Duke portfolio NYC partner in deal for 9 East Side buildings Saturday, March 17, 2007 Henry J. Gomez Plain Dealer Reporter It took a King's touch to land Duke Realty Corp.'s princely portfolio of nine East Side office buildings. Working with a partner in New York City, the King Group of Beachwood has acquired the properties - about 900,000 square feet in all - in a deal that closed Friday. Financial terms, including a sale price, were not disclosed. According to the Cuyahoga County auditor, the properties have a combined value of more than $100 million, with the three-building Landerbrook Corporate Circle in Mayfield Heights the biggest prize at $41.8 million. Many local industry observers predicted an out-of-state heavyweight would emerge to relieve Duke, an Indianapolis-based company that is exiting the Greater Cleveland market. http://www.cleveland.com/business/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/business/1174120547129370.xml&coll=2
June 25, 200717 yr Anytime one of the main national players decide to exit an entire market, it is general not a postive sign. While its great to have some local players step up, their reach into the business world is generally a lot less then these national players like Duke.
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