DENVER — Etkin Johnson Real Estate Partners, the largest, full-service, privately owned commercial real estate investment and development company based in Colorado, closed Feb. 28 on a $75 million refinancing loan for its Colorado Technology Center (CTC) II Portfolio. Holliday Fenoglio Fowler, L.P. (HFF), which offers a fully integrated capital markets platform, arranged the 10-year, sub-4 percent fixed-rate loan with MetLife, one of the world’s leading financial services companies.
The portfolio comprises five properties in the Colorado Technology Center, including 1900 Cherry Street, 1960 Cherry Street, 2000 Taylor Avenue, 1900 Taylor Avenue, 633 CTC Boulevard, totaling 535,787 square feet. A sixth 109,386-square-foot built-to-suit building, located at 2035 Taylor Avenue, will be added to the loan once construction is complete in fall 2018.
“Through this financing, we are able to return a significant portion of investors’ capital earlier than expected,” said Derek Conn, executive vice president and partner at Etkin Johnson. “It is a testament to our strategic development approach in the Colorado Technology Center as well as our commitment to the marketplace long-term.”
“Etkin Johnson’s strong sponsorship and thoughtful project line up and design was instrumental in capturing strong lender interest in the permanent financing,” said HFF Senior Managing Director Eric Tupler, who, along with HFF Director Brock Yaffe, led the financing arrangement on behalf of HFF. “This is one of the largest loans completed for a high-market-rate industrial project that has been closed in many years. Lenders really understood the story and long-term market fundamentals of the project.”
“The HFF team played a pivotal role throughout the process,” added Conn. “They identified a lender who understood the significance of this transaction for Etkin Johnson and recognized the strength of Denver’s industrial market for an investment of this size.”
Etkin Johnson has been investing and developing in the CTC for nearly 30 years with foresight to accommodate the “Boulder Effect” that is driving tenants, who can no longer afford Boulder rents, down the U.S. 36 Corridor to Louisville, also in Boulder County.
“Anticipating the growing demand for industrial space, we took a chance on developing speculative buildings in the CTC,” added Conn. “Thanks to the efforts of our best-in-class leasing team, those properties leased quickly to growing companies. We’re now executing on that success.”
In September 2017, Etkin Johnson’s leasing team, led by Executive Vice President and Partner Ryan Good, announced the completion of the company’s 633 CTC Boulevard property along with three long-term leases to fully occupy the new building.
Etkin Johnson currently owns nearly 5 million square feet of industrial, office and hospitality properties in Colorado.