OMAHA—The Opus Group recently completed the construction of a $44 million, 128,000-square-foot build-to-suit world headquarters for Gavilon, the Omaha-based commodities trader. But Gavilon also decided it did not want to own the property, which has just been sold to Lexington Realty Trust, a New York-based single-tenant REIT.
“It's great for Gavilon because it allows them to deploy capital into their core business, which is more profitable,” says Marshall Burton, executive vice president of Minneapolis-based Opus Development Company, LLC. The sale closed on Dec. 30 and is the sixth transaction of this type between Opus and Lexington. Last year, for example, Lexington purchased the just-completed 168,000-square-foot build-to-suit worldwide headquarters for TriZetto Corp., in Englewood, CO.
Opus Development Company, LLC was the developer for Gavilon, and Opus Design Build, LLC served as the design-builder on the project. Open Studio Architecture was the design architect and Opus AE Group, LLC served as architect and engineer of record.
Formerly the ConAgra Trade Group, Gavilon has a long history in downtown Omaha, most recently on the ConAgra Foods campus, “but they are a wholly separate private entity that needed their own building,” says Burton.
The five-story, glass-walled structure at 1331 Capitol Ave. has a 50,000-square-foot trading floor that Burton calls the “heart-and-soul” of Gavilon's new home. The trading floor was designed without interior columns, allowing traders an unobstructed view of the entire space, which includes 22-foot ceilings, full-height glass walls and an open staircase connecting two levels.
The centrality of the building to Gavilon's operations, along with its 20-year net lease, should make the property a very valuable addition to the Lexington portfolio. Furthermore, the business district of Omaha has seen more commercial real estate activity in recent years, giving a boost to downtown property values.
In addition to hosting long-time corporate tenants like Union Pacific and Berkshire Hathaway, the downtown has seen the same demographic shifts that have brought thousands of younger people and families into CBDs across the Midwest. Multifamily developments have sprouted up, alongside more entertainment options such as a new baseball stadium and an arts center. The modernization of downtown Omaha, and its greater attractiveness as a community, should in turn help ease Gavilon's recruitment of new employees over the next few years. “Downtown Omaha,” says Burton, “like many downtowns, has seen a resurgence.”
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Brian J. Rogal
Brian J. Rogal is a Chicago-based freelance writer with years of experience as an investigative reporter and editor, most notably at The Chicago Reporter, where he concentrated on housing issues. He also has written extensively on alternative energy and the payments card industry for national trade publications.
