Tenants Chip in on Joint Venture Purchase

Mountain View MOB is adjacent to HonorHealth Scottsdale Shea campus.

SCOTTSDALE, AZ—Built in 1985, Mountain View Medical Plaza is considered a market-best medical office asset located within walking distance to a premier Scottsdale healthcare provider. The medical office building is located at 9700 North 91st St., with immediate adjacency to the HonorHealth Scottsdale Shea Medical campus. The medical plaza recently sold to Cypress West Partners in a joint venture with MedProperties Holdings LLC , a national healthcare-focused real estate private equity firm headquartered in Dallas. The seller was LNR Property LLC . The sales price was not disclosed. The plaza totals 72,878 square feet of space in three, two-story buildings. The property is currently 63% occupied with major tenants, Scottsdale Medical Imaging, Specialty Orthopaedic Surgery and Arizona Pulmonary Specialist . “This asset fits well into our acquisition strategy and provides significant upside on two fronts. Scottsdale has the perfect demographic and this medical office campus is in an ideal location near a high-profile healthcare provider. It also represents one of the few remaining quality assets near the campus with large blocks of contiguous space,” said Christopher J. Cumella , partner, Cypress West Partners. The transaction marks the third Scottsdale acquisition for Cypress West and Med Properties in the last 12 months. With this acquisition, Cypress West now has an Arizona medical office portfolio that exceeds 300,000 square feet of space. Cumella tells GlobeSt.com: “We like Scottsdale because it has the coveted demographics of higher-income retirees and wage earners, which provide a good healthcare climate.” The joint venture also includes substantial investment from two of the building’s major tenants: Scottsdale Medical Imaging and Specialty Orthopaedic Surgery. “The acquisition is a great example of our desire to take a more active role in our real estate needs now and for the long term,” said Carrie Ransil , CFO, Scottsdale Medical Imaging. “We’ve been looking for ways to evaluate and manage our real estate demands across the Valley. This acquisition allowed us to take control of a strategic asset for the practice and as such we will continue to evaluate similar opportunities throughout the Valley.  Partnering with a best-in-class firm like Cypress West helps us to achieve some of those goals and to use our real estate more efficiently.” As part of its ownership plan, Cypress West will conduct a complete property refresh including new exterior paint, new signage, landscaping upgrades, and lobby and hallway renovations. The team has also committed a significant amount of capital for tenant improvements to attract some of the area’s top physicians. Cumella tells GlobeSt.com: “There is an overall ‘silver tsunami’ going on now where more dollars are being spent on healthcare than other aspects of people’s lives. This leads to facilities with bigger spaces, extended hours and multiple locations. One other healthcare phenomenon is that major healthcare systems are partnering with funds to be operating entities to allow the ability to make equipment purchases, etc.” Rich Andrus , senior vice president, Menlo Group Commercial Real Estate based in Tempe, AZ, represented the buyer in the transaction and will handle leasing for Mountain View. Menlo Group was instrumental in bringing the groups together to form the joint venture. “After carefully considering lease and purchase options within the market, the solution of a joint venture partnership on the existing space became clear. I am truly excited for Scottsdale Medical Imaging and all involved. I’m bullish that this ownership team has the right strategy to position this building as one of the premier locations for medical practices surrounding the HonorHealth Shea campus. More importantly, we’ve built a template for future transactions involving physicians and private equity,” said Andrus.