The best deals in real estate are the ones that lead to another deal. And another deal. And another deal. And so on.
In 2020 the owner of Walker Mechanical Contractors approached Grisanti Group with a common real estate challenge – they were out of space. Walker owned and occupied an office/warehouse building of around 25,000SF at 1400 W. Jefferson Street and they were growing. They asked us to look for land site for new construction as well as existing buildings.
The search lead to a property at 4500 Robards Lane and 3417 Robards Court that was much larger than Walker Mechanical initially needed. This property consists of two large connected buildings totaling 167,000SF that were being sold by Gateway Press, a legacy printing company that was going out of business. Walker Mechanical only needed around 50,000-60,000SF, but this building was well-located in the City of Watterson Park, just off of I-265 and close to I-65. It was a good deal for the amount of square footage available. Grisanti Group helped Walker Mechanical negotiate a purchase agreement and get through due diligence and closing. Walker has since done an extensive renovation and internal office addition to that property. They have also already outgrown their initial planned space need, and currently utilize around 100,000SF at that building. It was fortunate that they purchased more than they needed.
Next on the agenda after the Robards closing was selling their building at 1400 W. Jefferson Street. Grisanti Group put that building on the market, and engaged in discussions with Jefferson County Public Schools, which owns the neighboring property where Central High School football stadium is located. JCPS had a need for some warehousing and office space, and this property being next door to an existing JCPS facility made sense for them to acquire. Grisanti Group guided that deal through the contract and closing processes, completing the transition for the Walker Mechanical leadership team.
The deals didn’t stop there. Walker Mechanical has also engaged Grisanti Group to lease out excess space at their new home on Robards. We have since helped negotiate 2 different short-term leases to fill a 67,000 SF portion of that building. It so happens to be back on the market again after the last tenant’s lease term expired. We’re ready to find a great tenant and do another deal at this property. Contact us if your business has a warehousing need of 67,000 SF!