With the Art Institute having recently expanded in the 10-story, 260,000 sf office building to be built on Block 4, that particular building is now about half preleased. The M Financial lease, for the top floors of the building, was probably signed near the top of the asking range, which was $23 per sf NNN. Add in several dollars per sf for full service, and the 10-year lease deal is valued at more than $15 million, which is why the building will be known as M Financial Plaza.

Meanwhile, Block 1 is already full. With fiber optic networking provider Tycom leasing 80,000 sf of office space and grocer Whole Foods Market leasing all 43,000 sf of the available retail space, just a few thousand square feet remains. Tycom is paying about $24.50 per sf (triple net) for its space. The company received a $20 per sf tenant improvement allowance. Whole Foods lease rate was not available.

Indeed, the only Brewery Blocks office project currently rising without tenants is Block 2 -- the only one Gerding Edlen no longer owns and one of the first that will be completed. Gerding Edlen pre-sold the 218,000-sf poster-building for the development -- the one fronting Burnside that incorporates part of the old brick brewery building -- to Multi Employer Properties Trust for an unknown price.