Prime Group's Downtown Portfolio in Play

CHICAGO-Prime Group Realty Trust’s suburban office and industrial portfolio remains on the block after one potential deal fell through, but the REIT may now be disposing of some of its 6 million sf of Downtown office assets as well. That could include its $350-million Dearborn Center project under development.

“We are pursuing a sale or joint venture of several of our Downtown office buildings,” Prime Group chairman Michael W. Reschke said in a recent conference call. Asked directly about reports that Bank One was buying Dearborn Center, Reschke said, “We’re not in a position to comment on that transaction at this time.”

Besides the 1.5-million-sf project at Dearborn and Adams Streets, Prime Realty’s Downtown holdings consist 1.353-million-sf One IBM Plaza at 330 N. Wabash Ave., 944,556-sf 77 W. Wacker Dr., 874,742-sf 208 S. LaSalle St., 846,759-sf 33 W. Monroe St. and 770,191-sf 180 N. LaSalle St. The decision to throw Downtown office assets into its mix of offerings was made after seeing other buildings in and around the Loop sell for prices approaching a “high-water mark,” Reschke says, as well as discussions with office brokers. “The quantity and quality of buyers and the interest from buyers was very strong,” he adds.