Twin Cities Industrial Deal
| TRANSACTION TYPE & DETAILSDate: April 9, 2020 Transaction Type: Sale Property Type: Industrial Size: 7,000,000 sq. ft. Sale Price: About $650,000,000 Seller: CSM Buyer: LINK Industrial |
Client Objectives
In 2018, Mark Kolsrud, SIOR, approached Minneapolis-based CSM Corporation with an intriguing proposal—to sell the industrial portion of the CSM holdings to LINK. This transaction proved to break every record in Minnesota real estate history. LINK—one of the world’s largest investment firms and one of the most active real estate buyers—was looking to expand its Midwest and West portfolio. They saw CSM’s nearly 7 million square foot portfolio as the diamond in the crown of the Twin Cities’ booming investment market, with an added benefit of including square footage in the Denver area as well.
"I can't imagine another deal like this happening again in Minnesota, it has been quite incredible. I feel so blessed to be part of this transaction."
Transaction Profile
- 59 properties
- 5.7 million square feet in Minneapolis, MN
- 1.3 million square feet of commercial space in Denver, Col.
- Largest transaction portfolio in Minnesota history. In comparison, the second largest was a recent $313 million deal.
Solution
LINK tapped Colliers senior vice president Mark Kolsrud, SIOR, a 35-
year industry veteran, to help negotiate. In addition to his relationship with LINK, Kolsrud had worked with CSM CEO and president, Gary Holmes, for more than 20 years. Besides serving as a decadeslong advisor to Holmes, Kolsrud had worked with every major property owner in the Twin Cities area, giving him a deep understanding of the market. This insight was especially important for a company looking to expand its holdings in a market it had only entered less than a year prior.
The result was the sale of 7 million square feet, largely consisting of Class A industrial property, with 5.7 million square feet of it found in the Twin Cities and the remaining 1.3 million in Denver.
LINK and other such investors are still looking to close transactions in the current economic climate. While this deal certainly didn’t just come about over the past month, it is a testament to the industrial market that deals continued despite the COVID-19 pandemic. Industrial is an asset class that—due to its high liquidity and sustainable momentum—continues to grow amidst a pandemic that has brought global economies to a standstill.
PARTICIPANTS & INFORMATION PROVIDED BY
Mark Kulsrud, SIOR