The leasing assignment comes on the heels of a $15-million renovation of the 1980s building at 111 W. Monroe St. CB Richard Ellis' Phoenix office had the assignment during the building's sale in early 2007 for $40 million and renovation by the buyer, One 11 Plaza LLC.

Casey Brown, president of ECL Inc. in San Diego, says CBRE did an excellent job with the building since it was almost empty when it was bought. "There wasn't anything negative about the team we had, but changes in the brokerage community opened the door for us to evaluate other alternatives," says Brown, whose company is part of the ownership, One 11 Plaza LLC.

Grubb & Ellis senior vice president John Bonnell explains to GlobeSt.com that the class B building's low occupancy is because it had been slated for conversion to office condominiums by the previous owner. As a result, leases weren't renewed or new tenants seated. When the condo office fell out, the San Diego-based limited liability company claimed it for its value-add potential, according to Bonnell.