MINNEAPOLIS—The nation's suburban office market is undergoing a change, as more developers seek to transform business parks into livable, walkable communities that will attract the next generation of workers. Elion Partners, for example, has just signed up Whole Foods Market for a 45,000-square-foot space at the former regional headquarters of State Farm Insurance, a 100-acre site located in suburban Woodbury that Elion and its partner Kraus-Anderson just purchased.
The partners plan to renovate and lease a 400,000-square-foot building on the site, and transform the entire parcel into CityPlace, a 700,000-square-foot mixed-use campus with shopping, restaurants, a hotel and additional office space.
“We are thrilled to have Whole Foods Market as our grocer and enthusiastic about how this offering will enhance the CityPlace experience for its office workers, visitors and the Woodbury community,” says Elion's Juan DeAngulo. “Whole Foods Market's healthy offerings underscore what CityPlace will be: a walkable, professional environment showcasing an ease of lifestyle situated amid quality and convenient amenities.”
The campus will include shopping, restaurants, a 116-room Residence Inn and class A office space. According to Shlomo Khoudari, managing principal at the Aventura, FL-based Elion, developers plan to include another 120,000-square-feet of retail space. Elion will shortly make more announcements about the other retailers and restaurants that will occupy CityPlace.
“With Whole Foods Market as an anchor, we are seeing increased interest from other strong national and regional brands,” says Khoudari. “The office and retail components are designed to complement each other. To that end, CityPlace will have the amenities and services required to attract and retain the elite talent today's corporate users require, while the retailers will benefit from the pull of quality workers in the adjacent office buildings.”
The partners will begin site work later this month and anticipate completing the project in 2017. Senior vice president Thomas Palmquist of Welsh Colliers International represented Elion in the transaction. Russ McGinty of North Central Commercial Real Estate represented Whole Foods.
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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.
