The properties are a two-story, 162,000-sf building in the downtown at 2420 Pikes Peak Ave. in Colorado Springs and a Wards store at 2222 Spencer Highway in Pasadena, TX. The Colorado store, built in 1964, had been renovated in 1999. The Texas store, erected in 1967, underwent a renovation in 1989, but Jupiter is planning to do additional work in the next 12 months.Founded in 1872 as a catalog company, Wards is one of the largest privately held retailers in the US with 250 stores in 31 states. The company last year rolled out 40 new prototype stores in 13 states. Wards operates retail stores, distribution centers and product-service centers across the country and earns annual sales in excess of $3 billion.

Jupiter Realty, founded in 1985, develops and invests in commercial real estate properties and businesses with a national and international scope. It has offices in Chicago, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Denver, San Francisco and Charleston, SC, with business operations spanning 43 states, Costa Rica and Asia.

Jupiter has interests in several real estate-related businesses including Chicago-based Jupiter Brokerage Services LLC, a national full-service brokerage firm specializing in tenant representation; Houston-based PM Realty Group, a national, portfolio-management and real estate services firm; Hostmark Hospitality Group, a national full-service, hotel management and development firm, headquartered in Schaumburg, IL; Jupiter Asset Corporation, a Houston-based, national, asset-management firm, specializing in under-performing portfolio work-outs; and Jupiter Communities, Inc., a national residential management company, based in San Francisco.