Midwest Real Estate Equities Sells 66,000 Square-Foot Retail Condo to Restaurant Depot

Business Wire, April 3, 2008

Redeveloped Center is Home to One of the First Shopping Center Condos in Chicagoland Area

OAK BROOK, Ill. -- Midwest Real Estate Equities, Inc. today announced the sale of a 66,000-square-foot shopping center condominium in their Landings of Lombard shopping center, to Restaurant Depot, a national restaurant wholesale chain of stores. Restaurant Depot caters solely to restaurants and non-profit food service providers, as well as business owners and is not open to the public. Midwest Equities is in the process of redeveloping Landings of Lombard, a 204,000 square-foot, 23-acre center, formerly anchored by Menards. The center is located on North Avenue and Interstate 355 in Lombard, Ill.

"Commercial condominiums are a growing trend in the industry," said Steve Rubin, vice president of Midwest Equities. "We have seen more and more of this condominium approach in recent years with office and industrial buildings, but to our knowledge, no shopping center condos have been done in Illinois. Restaurant Depot wanted to purchase their portion of our center and reap the benefits of property ownership. It's an excellent way for a business to increase its asset value and build equity."

T-Mobile recently signed a lease for space at the center, and other tenants include Redwing Shoes, Ultimate Spa and Jimmy Johns. Landings of Lombard has 120,000 square feet remaining for purchase or lease. The center is currently shadow-anchored by a 110,000-square-foot Harlem Furniture store that is one of the most successful locations for the company, as well as the furniture chain's corporate headquarters.

"Midwest Real Estate Equities bought this property to capitalize on its excellent location and to revitalize it," Rubin said. "Businesses can lease or purchase stores. We are repositioning Landings of Lombard into a busy, high-quality center, and our flexibility affords us more options to attract quality tenants and buyers."

Midwest Equities worked with the City of Lombard and the Illinois State Tollway Authority to improve the center's visibility from I-355 by relocating a number of trees which blocked the sight lines. A four-story pylon sign with electronic changeable letters has been approved for the I-355 side of the center, and new signage has been approved for the North Ave., as well as the Rohlwing Rd. exposures.

"With more than 200,000 vehicles per day passing this site, it is one of the most heavily trafficked locations in Illinois with the ability to draw tens of thousands of people," Rubin said. "You don't see this size and quality location available for redevelopment very often, especially in well-established suburbs such as Lombard. Restaurant Depot will be a catalyst to finish off the sales and leasing of our center."

North Avenue is experiencing substantial new real estate activity with the addition of quality new tenants and owners including CVS Pharmacy, Starbucks, Staples, Valley Produce and two new churches, Rubin added.

Midwest Equities is represented by Horizon Realty Services, Inc. in Buffalo Grove, Ill. Spartan Real Estate and Development, in Glen Ellyn, Ill., represents Restaurant Depot. Herbert Kessel, of Beermann and Swerdlove, in Chicago, Ill. is the condominium attorney for Midwest Equities and Cassie Hrtanek is their in-house counsel on the sale.

Midwest Real Estate Equities is currently developing and re-developing other retail centers in major Illinois retail markets such as Schaumburg, Antioch and Round Lake. Midwest Real Estate Equities specializes in acquiring "value-added" retail, multi-family and industrial properties, and has converted over 3,000 apartment units into condominiums. The company generally purchases properties valued between $1 million and $70 million and acts strictly as a principal.